


A Hidden Star

by AnAwkwardOwl



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: AU, Angst, F/M, Mutual Pining, Slice of Life, Slow Burn, Terraqua find a baby, Vanitas redemption, a whole lotta fluff, brothers Vanitas and Ventus, himbo terra, like the slowest of burns, no blood or gore, tw: alludes to sexual scenes, tw: curse words, tw: fighting
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-16
Updated: 2019-12-08
Packaged: 2021-01-31 13:50:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 38,804
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21447229
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnAwkwardOwl/pseuds/AnAwkwardOwl
Summary: Sometimes a family is a tired Keyblade Master, her kind and buff sorta/kinda boyfriend, a light child and his cat, a gremlin child and his army of demon-spawn, and a random baby they found on the street. (AKA: Terraqua find a baby)
Relationships: Aqua & Terra (Kingdom Hearts), Minor or Background Relationship(s), terraqua
Comments: 18
Kudos: 90





	1. The Basket

It was quiet. The stars were gleaming at their brightest, providing a dim light even in the pitch black darkness. Neon lights blared down the alleyways. 

“I never liked Traverse Town.” Terra shattered the silence. 

“What? Why not?” Aqua inquired. 

“I dunno. I think it’s the neons. Something’s real unsettling to me about heartless appearing in such a well lit area.” 

“That does make sense,” Aqua shrugged. “The actual town part is so cute though.”

“I never denied that,” Terra smiled. “We could stop by if you’d like?” 

“We should wait until our mission is done.” 

“Oh, it’d just be a minute. We have to check everywhere, after all. Heartless can spawn anywhere- We just want to be thorough.” 

Aqua shook her head and grinned. “Fine, only for a couple minutes. We could visit Cid and restock on some things.” 

“Could never have enough hi-potions.” Terra winked and turned on his heel, walking to the first district. 

“Yes, but only because you charge head first into battle so much.” Aqua teased. 

“You can’t plan out everything!” Terra shrugged. “Sometimes the best plans are to fight your enemy head on.” He punched his fists together. 

“While I see your point, I have become a lot more cautious, personally.” Aqua’s smile faded. “After the whole… incident.” 

Terra saw that she had stopped walking, immediately drowned in her own thoughts. He rushed over, clapping a hand on her shoulder. “Hey now,” he gently rested a finger under her chin to get her to look up. “We’re safe, Aqua. That’s behind us now. Right now, we’re focusing on our mission to keep others safe. And I know the best out of everyone how spectacular you are that.” Terra winked, and Aqua couldn’t help but grin. “Maybe we could get some ice cream too?” 

“We’re not stopping for ice cream,” Aqua chuckled, gently pushing him away to walk ahead. “Ven would kill us.” 

“He doesn’t need to know!” Terra teased, walking behind her. 

Opening the doors to the first district flooded the duo in warm light. “Straight to Cid’s and then right back, okay?” 

Terra closed the doors behind them. “There’s no rush.” 

“Who said we were rushing?” Aqua smirked. 

It was late at night, the street lamps lighting their way. Everyone had found their way back home and was safely sleeping in their beds. Thankfully Cid had hired more staff, allowing for the keyblade wielders to stock up 24/7. Aqua breathed in the quiet night air, allowing herself to relax for a moment. Something bothered Terra- maybe it was too quiet to him. But seeing Aqua at peace helped him relax as well. 

“It’s beautiful here, don’t you think?” Aqua looked closely at a sign hanging down from Cid’s Shop. She ran her fingers across the wood, appreciating the brushwork of the potion in it. 

“I could think of something else more beautiful.” Terra spoke under her breath. 

“Hmm?” 

“N-nothing. I said that I agree with you.” 

She raised an eyebrow. “Something tells me I shouldn’t believe you.” 

“I would never lie to you.” Terra crossed his arms. He quickly became uncomfortable though, opening the door and beckoning her. “Ladies first.” 

Aqua shook her head, but took the bait. “You can stay out here if you’d like. I’ll only be a minute.” Terra nodded, and closed the door behind her. He immediately slouched over, leaning on the wall adjacent. 

“Smooth, Terra. You’re on a mission, now isn’t the time to be doing that. And why are you even doing that? You’re best friends, not”- he grumbled to himself, smacking his face in his hands. “I need Ven here to stop me from saying that shit.” 

Ooowah! 

Terra jumped to his feet and summoned his keyblade. “Who’s there?” He called out. But all that came back was silence. He took a deep breath and let the blade go. “Hearing things.” He sighed. 

Oo-Owah! Owahhh! 

He summoned his blade again, firming his stance. Aqua stepped out of the store with a small pouch, tying it around her waist. 

“Alright, I got three hi-potions and an ether, that should be more than- what are you doing?” 

Terra flushed. “I swear, there was a sound. I think it came from the left.” 

Aqua blinked, gently resting a hand on his arm. He lowered it, the tension in his body releasing. “Everyone is asleep, Terra. It was probably a bird or a mouse.” 

“I just- I coulda sworn…” 

“It’s okay.” Aqua smiled up at him, filling Terra’s chest with warmth. 

“As you say.” He nodded. “Let’s get back to the mission.” 

“I think that’d be good, get you some rest sooner rather than later.” 

OOWAHHH! 

“What was that?” Aqua spun, Terra tensing. 

“That was the sound!” 

“We should investigate. Someone could be in trouble.” 

“Now you’re speaking my language,” Terra nodded, running ahead. 

“Wait for me!” Aqua summoned her own blade, rushing after him. 

They ran in the direction of the sound, quickly changing course anytime it sounded off again. It was close, but there were so many alleys to get lost in. 

“I found it!” Aqua yelled after Terra, who spun on a dime after her. There was a large pile of black sludge undulating in the middle of the street, small yellow lights appearing and disappearing within it. 

“Heartless? In here?” Terra paused. 

“I don’t know, but we can’t stand here!” 

Before she could say more, Terra charged in, striking the pile so furiously that small heartless exploded off of it. 

“Terra!” Aqua sighed, but stanced herself, running in as well. 

Terra hacked at the growth, Aqua catching the stragglers that tried to run. 

“There’s something inside of this thing!” Terra called out. 

“What?” Aqua exclaimed. 

“I dunno, just get ready, alright?” 

“Be careful! It may be harmless.” 

“Gotcha.” Terra slashed across the top of the mountain of heartless, many being cut in half. Tiny hearts littered the sky above them. The slash revealed something woven inside. It wasn’t a heartless. 

Aqua still fighting those who fled, Terra kept excavating the slowly dwindling pile. After a few minutes, he could make out a tweed basket. What the hell was in a basket that made the heartless go crazy like this? 

“We only have a few more!” Terra huffed, slowing down his strikes as to not hit the basket. 

With the final hit, one heartless squirmed into the ground to run. Aqua caught it, driving her blade into the ground. The glowing heart released, rising into the sky. 

“That’s it.” Aqua breathed. She put away her keyblade and jogged over to Terra. “A basket? What were they after?” 

“I don’t know.” Terra crouched down next to it. A fluffy blanket covered the contents. He carefully dug a finger into the cloth, scrunching it down to reveal what was inside. 

“What the hell?” Aqua covered her mouth in shock. 

“Fuck.” Terra breathed. 

A tiny baby opened its eyes and stared at them. Its arms had broken free of the blanket, its tiny hands grasping at the air. It had a tuft of red hair and piercing green eyes. “Owah?” 

The duo was frozen, staring blankly at the child. Aqua’s gummiphone buzzed and rang out, nearly giving her a heart attack. She fumbled her phone, grasping it tight and answering. “Hello? U-uh, Aqua and Terra reporting, sir.” 

Yen Sid appeared on the screen. “The stars have told me that the dark presence has disappeared.” 

“Ah, yes, we”- 

Terra hopped up, clasping an arm around Aqua. “I hope so, the fight we just had was tiring! Hey, could I grab one of those potions, Aqua?” 

“You look fine- oh!” Aqua glanced at Yen Sid, who waited patiently. “Sure, here.” She dug into her pouch, handing Terra a small green bottle. He chugged it down, instantly revitalising his body. He shook his head in disgust. 

“Can’t we like, mix in some fruit or something so it doesn’t taste so bad?” 

“I hate to interrupt,” Yen Sid spoke. “But I wanted to call to know it was indeed you two who completed the task. You may head back to the Land of Departure if you would like.” 

“Thank you, sir.” Aqua bowed. She snaked a hand behind Terra’s head, making him bow as well. 

“Owahh?” 

“What was that?” Yen Sid asked. Terra and Aqua both tensed. 

“Ah, someone’s walking their dog.” Terra quickly pointed out. 

“Hmm.” Yen Sid nodded. “Alright then. Stay safe, young wielders. Let your heart be your guiding key.” With that, the phone screen went black. 

“I can’t believe he bought that.” Terra stared blankly. 

“Why didn’t we tell him about the baby?” Aqua shoved her phone in her pocket, kneeling down to the basket. “Could this really be what was causing the disturbance?” 

“I panicked,” Terra scratched his neck. “I just have this feeling that we should take care of this discreetly. It probably just attracted the heartless because it was so loud, I don’t want the others to freak out about it.” 

“I guess it’s better if only two people freak out about it and not an entire army.” Aqua curled into herself, laying her hand inside the basket. The baby swatted at it, trying to grab it. 

“Exactly.” 

“So what do we do?” Aqua stood back up. “Everyone in town is asleep. And I think it’s clear that whoever was this baby’s parent, doesn’t want them anymore.” 

“We don’t know that, there could be another reason it was left here.” 

“Like what?” 

“Like…” Terra thought hard. “The heartless picked it up and brought it away?” 

Aqua raised a brow. “I don’t think that’s likely,” she sighed. “But I suppose we have nothing else to go off of. Maybe we should go door to door and ask?” 

“Beats any plan I could think of.” 

“It’s still not that great of a plan,” Aqua held her arms. “It’s far too late right now, no one would answer the door.” 

“So we start in the morning.” Terra shrugged. 

“And leave it here?” 

“Well, no. We don’t know if it could attract more heartless.” 

“Also, it’s a baby,” Aqua furrowed her brow. “They need to be somewhere better than the middle of an alleyway.” 

They both stood silent a minute. 

“We could take it with us.” Terra offered. 

“What?” Aqua jumped. “Terra, you know we can’t cross worlds with others! It disrupts the order.” 

“What order does a literal infant have?” Terra gestured toward the basket. “It would just be for the night. Then we can set off at sunrise tomorrow and ask around.” 

Aqua tensed, working it over in her mind. “That may be crazy enough to work,” she hesitated. “But if anything goes wrong, I blame you.” 

“Wouldn’t be the first time,” Terra picked up the basket. “Come on, let’s get home. We got a lot to explain to Ven.”


	2. First Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So they crossed worlds with a random baby they literally found on the street. What could go wrong with that?

Aqua slowly opened the door, gesturing to Terra to keep quiet. He held the basket to his side, the baby fast asleep. She led them inside, silently shutting the door and walking into the living room. 

Ventus had fallen asleep on the couch again, Chirithy curled up on his lap. Aqua held her hand out in front of Terra, pointing to make sure he noticed him. Terra nodded, grunting affirmation. Simultaneously, he stepped onto the tile floor, his wooden sandals making a loud clunk. Aqua shot him a look, which Terra could do nothing but sheepishly shrug. Ventus began to stir, groaning and rubbing his eyes. 

Ventus blinked until he could see clearly, turning around to his friends. “Oh, hey guys!” He was about to get up, but stayed since Chirithy was still asleep. He absentmindedly scratched behind its ear. “Glad to see you safe. How was it? What was the disruption?” He leaned a bit, trying to see what Terra was failing to hide behind him. “What’s that?” 

“Ven, shouldn’t you be going to bed?” Aqua walked up to him and placed a hand on his head. 

“I couldn’t sleep,” he shrugged. “I came out here to wait for you, and I guess Chiri helped me pass out.” 

“I’m sorry you were having trouble sleeping. Why don’t you take Chirithy back to your room now? Me and Terra are home safe, we can tell you all about it in the morning.” 

Ventus groaned, debating his choices. 

“I would listen to her,” Terra smiled. “She’ll bodyslam you to the bed if you don’t.” 

“I will.” Aqua smirked. 

Ventus sighed. “Okay. You gotta promise to remember everything in the morning.” 

“Promise.” Aqua winked. 

Ventus tried to shake Chirithy awake, and when it didn’t work, pulled them up and cradled it in his arms. “Goodnight, guys.” 

“Goodnight, Ven.” Both Terra and Aqua sung. Ventus shuffled his way to the doorway leading upstairs. 

“Owah?” A small noise sounded from the basket. 

“What was that?” Ventus paused. 

Aqua and Terra froze, unsure what to do. 

“Guys?” Ventus shuffled closer. “What’s in the basket?” 

Aqua desperately looked at Terra for an answer. He took a deep breath, and gestured toward the couch, placing the basket on the cushions. Ventus hesitantly went up to it, looking between it and the duo. 

“This isn’t a prank, right? A flood isn’t gonna pop out and claw off my face?” 

“Just…” Aqua held onto Terra’s arm for support. “Look for yourself, and we’ll explain.” 

Ventus’s face twisted in confusion. He placed Chirithy down on the floor, their body ragdolled across the small rug. Carefully, he pulled the blanket inside the basket down, revealing the baby inside, fast asleep. A heavy moment of silence passed. 

“Okay, so,” Ventus looked deep in thought. “I know where babies come from, that’s nothing new. But I am incredibly confused about how you two had one in the span of a few hours.” 

“Ven!” Aqua let go of Terra’s arm, who looked like he had the wind knocked out of him. Both blushed so hard, the temperature of the room rose. “I-it’s not- Terra and I are not”- 

“We found it,” Terra interjected. “In the middle of the street, abandoned. It… was the cause of the disturbance. We found it with a swarm of heartless surrounding it.” 

“He’s right.” Aqua closed into herself. 

Ventus let the information sink in. “So it was orphaned, and you crossed worlds with it?” 

“Yes,” Terra spoke. 

“No,” Aqua interjected. 

“No?” Terra looked over at her. 

“It’s only for tonight,” Aqua explained. “Terra and I will take it back to Traverse in the morning and find its family.” 

“Oh, ‘kay,” Ventus scrunched his mouth. “Do you know why heartless swarmed it?” 

“Not a clue.” Terra shook his head. 

“Follow up,” Ventus scratched his head. “Do either of you know how to take care of a baby?” 

They looked at each other, lips thin and eyes wide. 

“It shouldn’t need too much attention overnight,” Aqua bit her lip, looking at Terra. “Right?” 

“Don’t look at me,” he shook his head. “We know as much as the other does. But I’m sure we’ll be able to make it work. We’ve figured out worse situations.” 

“Hmm,” Aqua held her arms, looking down at the baby. “I suppose you’re right. Let’s just hope this goes smoothly.” 

“So what are you gonna do with it tonight?” Ventus picked up Chirithy again, the dream eater limp in his arms. 

“I’ll keep it in my room. You two go get rest.” Aqua went to take the basket.

“No offense, but maybe I should be in the same room?” Terra offered. “Two heads are better than one, and we don’t know how to handle this.” 

Aqua thought a minute. “I would appreciate that Terra, really. But I don’t think I have enough room in my bedroom.” 

“We can share a bed for just tonight. We used to do it all the time when we were young.” He shrugged. “I don’t want to have you deal with it alone.” 

Ventus felt the conversation didn’t need him anymore. “If you guys need anything, you know where I sleep. Goodnight, good luck.” 

“Goodnight Ven.” Aqua and Terra waved him away. 

When Ventus was out of earshot, Aqua spoke again. “With all due respect, we aren’t children anymore. Don’t you think it would be a little awkward sleeping in the same bed?” 

“Not at all. Listen Aqua, I know about your night terrors. What if you have one tonight? It seems likely since you’re under more stress. I’ll be there in case the baby needs something so you can take time to calm down.” 

“And what of your nightmares?” Aqua’s face was full of concern. “What if you have an episode?” 

“My nightmares are about falling back to the darkness. You know this. But I know that, if I wake up, and I see the woman who lit my way for ten years, right by my side, I’ll be okay.” Terra tried to reach for Aqua’s hand, who pulled it away to cover her face. “As you said, just for one night, right? Please let me help you.” 

Aqua wrestled herself for a moment before nodding. “I hate to admit it, but you do have a point. Would you mind joining me?” 

“I would love to.” Terra smiled and grabbed the basket. “Let’s go get some rest, tomorrow’ll be a long day.” 

Aqua led him up the stairs and down the hallways, hesitantly opening the door. “Are you sure this is okay?” 

“I promise.” Terra reassured. 

“Okay… well, come on in.” 

They walked inside and momentarily placed the basket on the bed. The room was small and full of antiques. Fairy lights covered the ceiling like stars, coloured glass objects hung in front of the large windows. Everything was either wooden or glass, a calm, homey atmosphere filling the area. On the windowsill was a conglomeration of small picture frames, each filled with memories of the trio. Terra took note of one picture of the two of them when they were young, Terra sticking his tongue out and Aqua giggling. 

“So uh,” Terra broke the silence. “Where should we keep it?” 

Aqua looked around the room. “I guess you can put it on the desk? Let me clear a space.” She hopped over and started piling books and nicknacks on the floor. Terra carefully placed the basket on top, making sure the baby was still okay. 

“That should be good.” Terra nodded. 

“Okay,” Aqua nodded. “I want to put on my pajamas. Would you mind?” 

“Not at all.” Terra shrugged, undoing the belts on his chest. 

“N-no!” Aqua waved her hands. “I mean, would you mind leaving a moment so I can change?” 

“Oh!” Terra flushed. “Of course. I’ll stand outside.” 

“Thank you,” she sighed relief. Terra sheepishly stepped out and closed the door. 

Aqua went about changing into comfier clothes- small gym shorts and a large baggy t-shirt with a bubble pattern. Before she got Terra, she took a moment to look at the baby. It was still asleep, almost silent snores coming from it’s tiny nose. There was a sudden weight in her chest, one she couldn’t explain. She needed to find this baby’s parents as soon as possible. She shook her head of the thought, and opened the door for Terra. 

“Hm? All dressed?” Terra asked from the hallway. 

“Yup, come on in.” Aqua pulled out an extra blanket from the closet, placing it on the bed. 

“Sweet.” Terra did as told, closing the door again. 

“I have another blanket, but if you want more pillows you’ll have to run down to the living”- Aqua shrieked as she looked up, jumping back on the bed. 

“Oh, I don’t need more pillows, it’s fine.” 

“Why- Why are you shirtless?” Aqua squeaked. 

“Uh,” Terra looked down and back up. “These are my pajamas?” 

“Are you seriously okay with just sleeping in underwear?” She spoke in disbelief. 

“Yes?” Terra crossed his arms to hide his chest. “Should I go grab a shirt?” 

Aqua sighed, standing back up. “No, no. It’s fine. I just wasn’t expecting that.” 

“You spar with me and Ven while we’re shirtless all the time, I didn’t think it would be a problem. If it makes you uncomfortable...” 

“It’s alright!” She shook her hands. “I… I don’t mind.” She flushed. “Just stay on your side of the bed, okay?” 

“Understood.” Terra nodded, walking around to his side and sitting down. “Wait, should we check to see if it needs anything?” 

“It’s fast asleep, I think it’s okay.” Aqua nervously picked her nails a moment before sitting on the other side. 

“I’ll take your lead on this.” Terra laid down and pulled the covers over. “Let’s sleep while we can.” 

“I agree.” She followed suit. “Goodnight, Terra.” 

“Goodnight, Aqua.” 

Aqua turned off the lights, draping the room in darkness. Small baubles dimly glowed around the room. 

Terra fell right to sleep. Aqua did not. 

She felt as if every movement would wake up Terra. She almost found it hard to breathe, relying on meditation to calm her down. She laid still as a rock, practicing deep breathing. After awhile, and with some trouble, she fell asleep. 

Aqua’s eyes snapped open. She felt her heart in her throat, her body covered in sweat. She scanned the room for her clock. About two hours had passed. 

“This is gonna be a long night,” she breathed to herself, curling into a tight ball. 

Terra rolled onto his back, groggily looking over. “You okay?” 

Her heart raced faster. “Yes! Please, go back to sleep.” 

Terra grunted, laying back still. 

Aqua battled with herself a moment. “Wait️, Terra,” she spoke, almost not realizing she did. 

“Yes?” 

“Can I ask you something?” 

He opened his eyes and looked over to her. “Yeah? What’s up?” 

“If… if I had to go back to the realm of darkness”- 

“Hey, I’m gonna stop you right there.” Terra slowly lumbered to sit up. “Nobody, literally no one, will ever be sent back there. I promise you.” 

“I know, I know,” Aqua sat up as well, curling her legs to her chest. “But in the circumstance. If Ven or Sora or Mickey or even Vanitas got stuck there again somehow, or there was some other emergency that warranted me going there. I can’t go alone. I can’t,” Aqua felt tears well in her eyes. “Everyone says I’m strong enough because I’m a master, but I’m not. I’m weak. And I have so much more to learn. I don’t know what I’m doing. And I just…” her throat burned as she tried to hold herself together. “Please, please Terra. If I have to go, would you come with me?” 

Terra opened his arms. “Come here,” he gestured. Aqua moved closer, Terra enveloping her in his arms. A wave of sobs came over her, Terra gently running his fingers through her hair. He waited patiently for it to pass, cooing her all the while. Eventually she collected herself, pushing away from his chest. 

“No one will be going to the realm of darkness, least of all you. You’ve done your time there. No one will ever force you back, no matter how strong you are. And believe me, you are a force to be reckoned with. Hell, you could easily knock me and Ven and Vanitas and everyone else down in five seconds flat! You are an amazingly talented weilder that we are lucky to have. But I swear to you,” Terra held a hand over his heart, “I will never leave your side.” 

Aqua wiped away her tears on her palm, a weak smile on her face. “Thank you.” 

“Of course. Aqua, I”- Terra bit his tongue. His eyes went wide as he searched for something, literally anything else, to say. 

“You…?” Aqua inquired. 

“I… I could protect you… more if I learned some of your techniques?” He reached, his voice getting higher. “Did you wanna spar tomorrow?” 

“Did you already forget that we have a baby we need to take care of?” Aqua raised a brow. 

“No! No, but we could finish that off very quickly and have the rest of the day to ourselves?” 

She shook her head. “You know what? If we come home before nightfall, me and you can spar in private. Deal?” 

Terra nodded. “Deal.” 

They smiled at each other a moment. Aqua sighed, looking over at the time. “I’m so sorry, we should get some more rest.” 

“No reason to apologize,” Terra shrugged, laying back down on his back. “Goodnight.” 

“Goodnight.” Aqua curled back into the covers. 

A moment passed. Aqua hadn’t noticed how close they were now since he hugged her, his chest mere inches away. She bit her lip, inching closer and gently and slowly laying an open hand over his heart. Terra, half asleep, held a hand over top of hers. With his free hand, he wrapped his arm up and over, pulling her closer. Aqua hesitantly laid her head on his bare chest. His heartbeat was strong and steady, something about it incredibly comforting to hear. She breathed softly and closed her eyes, and the duo fell fast asleep. 

OOOOOWAHHHHHHHH!!!! 

They jumped out of their skin at the noise. Aqua, realizing she was still holding tight to Terra, screamed and pushed herself away. Terra screamed back in confusion, jumping out of the bed. The baby screamed again, and they screamed at it. 

“Why are we screaming?” Terra yelled. 

“I don’t know, I got scared!” Aqua yelled back, rolling out of bed. 

“Can we stop then?” 

“Uh,” Aqua paused, bringing her voice down. “...Yes.” The baby kept crying, its arms reaching out of the blanket. “What do we do?” Aqua wrung her hands. 

“Not stand here,” Terra jogged over and looked inside the basket. Waterfalls fell from the baby’s eyes as it wiggled around. He hesitated a moment, taking it out of the basket and holding it tight to his chest. He bounced back and forth, trying to hush it. 

“What are you doing?” 

“I don’t know, I’m just doing whatever feels right I guess?” Terra looked concerned. The baby kept crying. “What is it you want little one?” He moves his arms to better hold it, a light bulb clicking on in his head. “I think I know what it is.” 

“Well?” Aqua had slowly moved closer after turning the lights back on. 

“I think it shit itself.” 

“Terra!” 

“What?” 

Aqua battled with words a moment. “One, language. Two, what do you mean?” 

“Aqua, it’s a baby. Me saying shit will not impede anything.”

Aqua glared daggers at him. 

“Alright, I take that back, I will never speak again.” Terra nodded. “Should we like… take it to the bathroom, or...?” 

“The baby isn’t going to know how to use a toilet.” 

“I know that, but where else are we gonna clean it up?” 

“Fair point,” Aqua looked around. “Go take the baby to the bathroom, I’ll be right there.” 

“You’re gonna leave me with this thing?” 

“You can keep it calm for five minutes. While you wait for me you can strip off its clothes, alright?”

“Is it okay for me to strip a baby?” Terra questioned, more to the air than to Aqua. 

She paused a moment. “Yes. Yes you can. Babies are literally almost always naked.” 

“But what if it’s a girl?” Terra held the baby closer. 

Aqua swore under her breath. “Please, just go to the bathroom and get it ready. I promise intergalactic police are not going to come to our door and arrest you.” 

“Okay, okay.” Terra nodded. “Just hurry.” 

Aqua nodded and shooed him out the room with the baby. Terra walked down the hallway to a large bathroom, trying to be as quiet as possible with a screaming child. He closed the door and turned on the lights, taking a moment to readjust his eyes. The baby held tight to the blanket around it, its tears wiping off on Terra’s chest. He gently placed it down on the counter, peeling away the blanket from the tiny hands. The baby wore a dark purple onesie with yellow polka dots. Terra carefully pulled the zipper down from the neck to the foot, pulling away the stained cloth as best he could from the wiggling baby. It took far more effort than it should have, but he successfully tossed it to the side. 

The baby started to calm down, seemingly realizing that the problem was being fixed. It stopped screaming, but still sobbed silently to itself, kicking its feet anytime Terra looked away. 

There was a soft knock on the door. Aqua slid inside, locking the door behind her. 

“Thank god, you’re here.” Terra sighed relief. 

“Glad to see you’re still alive,” Aqua walked up behind him and looked over his shoulder. “Holy- That is rancid!” 

“You’re telling me,” Terra shook his head. “I don’t wanna change that,” he pointed to the diaper. 

“I’ll do it.” Aqua shrugged. 

“Really?” Terra was shocked. 

“Yeah. I’ve been to hell, nothing I see fazes me. Oh, also, hold this,” she handed Terra a small piece of cloth. 

“How in worlds did you craft pajamas for it so quickly? You haven’t even seen it outside the blanket!” 

“Magic.” Aqua twirled her fingers. “Also helps that I enjoy these crafts.” 

Aqua dug in and immediately threw away the diaper. The baby immediately calmed down, staying fairly still. She wiped the skin down and flushed the excess, the baby clean again in just a few minutes. Terra was both amazed and disgusted, the smell spoiling his stomach. But to see Aqua so calm in graceful in a situation he had no idea how to handle- it was a sight to see. 

She stood for a second, taping her chin with a finger. “Terra, could you run and get me some pins from my desk? Right side, second drawer.” 

He did so without question, thankful for fresh air. Aqua grabbed an old hand towel and folded it as similarly as possible to the diaper. Terra popped back in, and Aqua grabbed the pins and stuck them to the towel so it stayed in place. 

“Not perfect, but it’ll do short term.” She showed off her work as she washed her hands. “Hope you weren’t attached to that towel.” 

“That’s smart as hell,” Terra reveled in her ingenuity. 

“Language,” she teased, flicking water over at him before she dried her hands. 

“Sorry,” he rolled his eyes when he knew she looked away. “You’re a natural at this.” He smiled. 

“You’re the one who calmed her down, I just dealt with the messy stuff.” 

“Her?” 

“It’s a girl.” Aqua smiled. 

Terra’s face lit up. “Really?” 

“Mm-hmm.” Aqua leaned against the counter. “Wanna put her clothes on?” 

“Oh yeah!” Terra held up the clothes. With the baby subdued, it was easier to put the cloth on. It was a similar to the last one, but this was a light blue color with white swirls. Terra picked her up and began bouncing her. 

“I’m gonna throw her blanket in the wash.” Aqua rolled it up in her hands. “Go on back to bed, I’ll be right there.” 

“Alright.” Terra nodded. The duo split off, and Terra walked back to Aqua’s room. By the time he got there, the baby was fast asleep again, its tiny snores in his ear. He gently laid her down in her basket. When he was sure she was okay, he laid back down in bed. Aqua came in shortly after, laying down beside him. 

“I hope she’s alright for the rest of the night.” Aqua whispered. 

“I’m sure she will be. She fell right back asleep.” 

“Yeah but”- 

There was a knock on the door. Aqua hopped out and opened it, Ventus and Chirithy standing before her. 

“Overheard the baby crying,” Ven scratched his neck. “I explained the situation to Chiri, and they wanted to help out.” 

“I can make sure the baby sleeps well!” Chirithy high voice piped up as it bounced. “And calm it down quicker!” 

“I think we’re okay.” Aqua smiled, her chest warm at the sentiment. 

“We could always use the extra help.” Terra spoke behind her. “Can’t hurt.” 

“I guess you’re right.” Aqua nodded. “Are you sure you won’t need them tonight, Ven?” 

“I’m sure!” Ventus stood up straight. “Chirithy wouldn’t leave me if I wouldn’t be okay.” 

“Thank you.” Aqua hugged Ventus. “And thank you, Chirithy.” She kneeled down and scratched behind its ear, a small purring sound coming out. 

“Goodnight guys!” Ventus saluted a goodbye and walked back down the hall. 

“Goodnight!” Aqua and Terra spoke together. Aqua welcomed Chirithy inside and closed the door. 

Chirithy immediately climbed up the desk and looked inside the basket at the baby. “It’s so small!” They whispered. They bounced in place a moment before curling up beside the basket and closing its eyes. 

Aqua crawled back into bed as well with a yawn. “Hopefully that’s the last interruption tonight,” she pulled the blankets tight around her. 

“I’m sure of it,” Terra offered to wrap his arm around her, but Aqua kept her distance again. “Try and get some more rest.” 

“You too.” 

“Oh, and Aqua?” Terra hesitated. 

“Yeah?” 

“If you were to have kids, if you want kids, I don’t know if you want them or not- because you know, a woman isn’t just here for bearing kids, and you can do whatever you like with your life- but like,” Terra fumbled over his words, stuttering what he was trying to say. Aqua stayed silent, letting him parse it out. “What I’m saying is that, if you wanted, I think that like, I know you would be a great mom, you know?” 

Aqua flushed. “Thank you,” she grinned to herself. “I think you would make a good father as well.” 

Terra froze a moment. “T-thanks.” 

A moment of silence passed. They whispered goodnight to each other and fell back asleep. 

In their sleep, Aqua rolled to be pressed against Terra’s side. With Chirithy guiding their dreams, the room was silent for the rest of the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh my god and they were roommates.


	3. The Search

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Terra and Aqua go back to Traverse Town to find the baby's parents.

Aqua got busy cooking up breakfast, flipping pancakes for the crew. Terra sat patiently at the countertops, watching the baby. They had both dressed and did their morning routines, Chirithy keeping an eye on her until they were ready. The dream eater was already back with its owner, the kitchen peacefully quiet- save for the sizzling pan. 

“Will she eat pancakes?” Terra thought aloud. 

“I don’t think babies have developed enough to eat food,” Aqua slid a stack of flapjacks to Terra, who promptly slathered it in butter and syrup. “I mean, just think with birds. The parents have to digest it and then puke it up for the chick.” 

“I’m not doing that.” Terra spoke, his mouth full. 

“I wasn’t asking you to.” Aqua chuckled. “Humans aren’t birds.” 

“How do we feed her, then?” Terra asked. 

“I’m not sure,” Aqua leaned onto the counter, grabbing her phone. “I wonder if I can look it up.” She chicken pecked her finger to type in the search. 

“Look up how to take care of a baby in general,” Terra huffed. “Because I have no clue.” 

“Hopefully, we won’t be taking care of her much longer. She’ll be with her parents soon.” Aqua spoke as she scrolled through. “It says formula? It’s like milk. But it has a lot of nutrients important for development.” 

“So normal milk won’t work?” 

“I don’t think so,” Aqua put her phone away. “Push comes to shove, we can buy some at Traverse Town.” 

“Sounds like a plan,” Terra swallowed down his current mouthful. “Sit down, you’ve been hard at work. You deserve some pancakes.” 

Aqua shook her head with a smirk, taking a seat across from him at the countertop. She sprinkled sugar and berries over her food and began digging in. They wanted to talk, but food was much more important at the moment. 

Ventus shuffled in, Chirithy hopping behind him. He took a seat next to Terra and grabbed his own pancakes. “Thanks, Aqua.” 

“Good morning to you too, sleepyhead.” She chuckled. “Were you able to sleep without Chirithy?” 

“Yeah, slept fine,” he shoveled food into his mouth. “How’s the baby?” 

“She seems to be okay,” Terra shrugged. “We’re gonna head out as soon as possible to find her parents.” 

“Sounds good.” 

Another set of footsteps shuffled into the room. A figured covered head-to-toe in a black blanket grunted. A tiny shadow-like creature hid behind him. 

“The eternally damned requires a bagel,” A gruff voice stated. 

The flood behind him squeaked. 

“Two bagels.” He corrected. 

“We have pancakes.” Aqua gestured. “Bagels are beside the toaster.” 

“I would rather not converse.” He narrowed his eyes. The flood skittered out and onto the counter and bit into a pancake, dragging it away. The boy sighed. “I hate that thing.” 

“Could you please leave your flood in your room this morning, Vanitas?” Terra asked, moving his body in between the shadow and the basket. 

“I don’t have to answer to you.” He snorted. 

“Vanitas.” Aqua spoke his name sternly. 

“Fuuuuuuuuuck,” Vanitas sighed. “George, leave.” 

The flood snapped up at its name, quickly stuffing pancakes in its mouth and scurrying away and up the stairs. Vanitas grumpily took a seat next to Ventus, shoveling plain pancakes onto his plate. 

“You know forks are a thing?” Ventus raised a brow at his brother. 

“I do what I want.” He grabbed a pancake and rolled it up in his hand, taking a bite out of it like a burrito. 

“It’s always so nice to have you for family breakfast.” Aqua joked. Terra hid a laugh in his hand. 

The baby stirred at the commotion, a small sound squeaking from the basket. “Owah?” 

“What the hell was that?” Vanitas tensed. 

“Uh,” Terra looked at the baby, and then back at the boy. He tilted the basket to show Vanitas. 

He was silent a moment. Ventus laughed. “Bold of you to assume that answers his question.” 

“It does!” Vanitas smacked Ventus alongside the head, which he just hid a smile to. “It’s uh, it’s…” he squinted his eyes. “Tiny.” 

“I mean, you’re not wrong.” Terra spoke. He put the basket back down, keeping his hand inside it to keep the baby calm. “It’s a baby.” 

“Is it dangerous?” 

“It’s a baby.” Aqua repeated incredulously. “It can’t even stand up.” 

“What does it do then?” He began eating again, mouth full while talking. All of the men in this household had no table manners. 

“It doesn’t do anything.” Aqua gestured to the basket. 

“What’s the point then?” Vanitas flung his pancake in his hand in questioning. 

“You take care of it until it grows up and can fend for itself, like us.” 

“Are you saying you all used to be… babies? Like that thing?” 

“Yes, actually.” 

“Was I?” His eyes went wide. 

“No,” Terra began, “You’re a special case.” 

“A very special case.” Ventus snickered. 

“Don’t make me put you in a coma again.” Vanitas glared. 

“Boys, play nice,” Aqua warned. The boys hushed, Vanitas crossing his arms. 

“Are you two gonna be okay with us leaving for the day?” Terra stood and grabbed his and Aqua’s plates, throwing them into the dishwasher. 

“Yeah, totally, no worries!” Ventus waved him off. 

“Ven, if you could clean up breakfast, that’d be great.” Aqua stood as well, gathering up the small bag they had prepared. “And Vanitas, if you could… not kill anyone.” 

“Promise.” Ventus nodded. 

“I don’t.” Vanitas grumbled. Ventus elbowed his stomach. “Alright, god, fine.” 

“We’ll be back as soon as we can.” Terra grabbed the baby basket. 

“Good luck!” Ventus waved them off. 

—

The duo sat quietly in the Gummi Ship, Terra as pilot and Aqua as co-pilot. The baby laid between them, Aqua keeping a hand on it anytime turbulence came around. Luckily it was a fairly short trip. 

Terra wrung the handles of his controls. Ever since they left the castle, questions had been bubbling in his stomach. That morning he had woken up second, and Aqua had already left to get ready. She didn’t even bother waking him. Was he crossing a boundary with having her rest in his arms? The bed felt so empty without her. He didn’t want to admit it, but he wasn’t looking forward to sleeping in his own bed again. 

He bit his tongue. This isn’t the time to talk about this. Later, after the baby had found her home. 

“Something’s bothering you,” Aqua broke the dead air, her wise eyes examining him. “You’re fidgeting.” 

Terra jumped in his seat. “No, it’s nothing, I’m good.” 

She raised a brow. “Terra.” 

Terra groaned, knowing he’d been caught. “I just… uh”- he tried to come up with anything else to talk about. “Pancakes didn’t settle well, is all.” 

“I can tell when you’re lying.” She shook her head. “We’ve only lived together all of our lives.” 

Terra chewed his lip a moment before sighing defeat. “I was thinking about last night.” 

Her face flushed as she sat straighter. “What about it?” 

“I was thinking… did you… I wanted to ask… we can drop it, but”- he stumbled over his words, unsure how to begin. 

“It was for one night, just for you to help me with the baby,” She interrupted. “It’s part of our duty.” 

“I know, I know, it’s just”- 

“But,” she spoke over him again. She swallowed hard. “That doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy your company.” 

Terra froze, his brain short circuiting. Aqua, not hearing a rebuttal, continued: “You calmed me down from my night terror faster than even a dream eater could have. And to hear your heart, and know that I will always have your foundation beside me- I fell asleep easier than I have in months.” 

“Aqua I,” Terra searched for the words. “I… really care for you. A lot. I mean, we’ve been together since we were kids, that’s not a surprise.” He nervously laughed. “But I wanted to offer, you know, that if you have a terror like that again, you know where I sleep. So I wouldn’t mind if… if you happened to find your way to me one night. If you want.” 

Aqua hid a small smile. “Thank you. I really appreciate that.” 

Terra stared starry-eyed. He had to bite hard on his cheeks to stop from saying something stupid. He shook his head and looked straight at the stars in front of him. 

“Hey Terra,” Aqua spoke. “Could you lean closer a moment?” 

“Hmm? Why?” He moved closer, looking down at the baby. “Is she okay?” 

Aqua quickly pecked a small kiss on his forehead. “She’s fine.” She winked. 

Terra’s whole body rose in temperature, his face flushing red. “Alright,” his voice cracked. He snapped back into position, suddenly focused on steering. Aqua had to stop herself from giggling. 

—

The baby started crying again on the descent. Aqua let Terra land as she took her out of the basket, trying to figure out the problem. She decided on that fact that the baby was probably hungry- it hasn’t eaten the entire time she’s been with them. They decided to stop by a grocery store in town, picking up a couple bottles of formula, stuffing the extras in their bag. They sat together outside on a bench. Aqua held the baby tight, cautiously attempting to feed it. It was easier than she expected, the baby doing most of the work. Terra sat close, his arms stretched across the bench back. 

“Awww!” An older lady passed by. “May I ask his name?” 

“Oh! I”- Aqua’s face flushed red. 

Terra stuttered. “It’s actually not ours. We found it. Do you know of anyone who may have lost their baby?” 

The woman’s face twisted. “How could someone just lose a baby?” 

Terra shrugged. “We have reason to believe it could have been carried away by heartless.” 

She gasped. “Well, I don’t know anyone in particular, but I would start for the houses closest to the district doors. Young people always seem to roost close to dangerous things.” 

“Thank you,” Aqua smiled warmly. “We’ll check there.” The woman nodded and walked away. 

“Do we really look like a couple?” Terra crossed his brows. 

“A boy and a girl feeding a baby does look suspiciously like a nuclear family.” Aqua shrugged. 

“Shoulda brought Ven and Van.” Terra crossed his arms behind his head. 

“That’s the opposite of a good idea.” She rolled her eyes. 

As the baby finished drinking, the duo packed back up and started down the alleys. Terra knew Aqua wasn’t great with greeting people with her anxiety, so he decided to do the talking while Aqua carried the baby. 

Most houses held no leads. A kind couple with their own baby gave them diapers that their own had grown too big for. One older man spoke how it was impossible for a baby to be swept away by heartless as they are too pure of light. A young woman spoke about how on her own world it was common for babies to be left on steps of orphanages, and perhaps the parents weren’t ready to take care of it. But Terra and Aqua kept pushing on, asking everyone they could find. 

They had gotten a good distance away from the district doors by the afternoon. It wasn’t looking promising. 

“I don’t think we’re gonna get to our lesson tonight,” Aqua spoke her thought. 

“Our lesson?” Terra hesitated. 

“Yeah. Don’t you remember last night? You asked if we could spar tonight.” 

“Oh!” Terra clicked it together, although he barely remembered saying that. “Maybe tomorrow, then.” He nudged her. 

“We’ll see,” she smiled, but it quickly faded. “I’m starting to lose faith in finding her parents.” 

“Hey now,” Terra used a finger to gently turn Aqua’s face toward his. “We’ll find her parents. Whatever it takes.” 

She took a deep breath, steadying herself again. “You’re right. Thank you.” 

“Come on, we only have a few houses left in the heart of town. Her parents have to be there.” 

“Alright,” she nodded, filled with vigor. “Let’s go.” 

The first house belonged to an older couple. The two men shook their heads, sorry they had no leads. 

The next belonged to an elderly woman, her house filled with animals. She detested children and slammed the door. Terra was glad he didn’t have to smell the animals a moment longer. 

A young woman, her hands covered in clay. She explained that a batch of her vases had been broken downtown. Terra apologized in general, knowing the younger weilders liked to break pots to see what was inside. Xion and Roxas specifically had a game going on about how much munny they could find, much to Lea and Isa’s chagrin. Nevertheless, the woman explained that she hadn’t seen or heard a baby in the area for awhile, and wished them luck. 

A teenager, face filled with piercings. They explained that they were an only child, and their parents were working right now. 

A thin man explained that he didn’t have a wife, let alone a baby. He had just moved to the neighborhood on work. 

Every single last one, a dead end. 

Sunset began to fall on the horizon. Aqua drug Terra to a small table in front of a closed cafe. They changed the baby’s diaper once again, Aqua pulling out a bottle and offering it to the baby. She threw it out of the basket, instead stretching her arms out and opening and closing her hands. Terra picked her up, bouncing her in his arms. 

“I think we are slowly getting the hang of this, at least.” Terra smiled. 

Aqua solemnly put away the bottle and sat down, watching Terra bounce the baby. “We’re not gonna find her family, are we?” 

“Of course we are! We just need to rethink this.” Terra reassured. “Maybe we should actually ask for some help.” 

“From who? Yen Sid? He’s not going to take kindly to all the rules we’ve broken.” 

“He doesn’t need to know!” Terra offered. Aqua looked at him incredulously. He sighed. “He does know all, you’re right. What about the king?” 

“The king has no idea what he’s doing. He left me in the dark world for 10 years.” 

“You have a great point.” Terra scratched his neck. “Goofy?” His voice cracked. “Didn’t he have a kid?” 

“Max, yeah. He’s been living in Disney Town with the others.” Aqua rested her head in her hands. “But, no offense to Goofy of course, it feels like we’re scraping the bottom of the barrel if we’re getting advice from him.” 

“You’re not wrong.” Terra sighed. “We do need any help we can get, though. Do you have any ideas?” 

“Eraqus,” Aqua sighed, unsure if she even said the name. Terra stiffened. He noticed his grip on the baby get tighter, taking a breath and laying her back in the basket. 

The duo sat silent a moment. It was clear both still had much to move on from. The air turned stale. 

“Do you remember when I broke my foot?” Terra half smiled. 

“We were 8,” Aqua turned to him. “I still feel guilty about it- we were sparring and we climbed up a tree. I pushed you down and you fell on it wrong.” She giggled at the memory. “You didn’t even notice from the adrenaline, your sock was soaked in blood and you didn’t even wince. But when I pointed it out you just cried and cried. And then I cried with you.” 

“Eraqus found us and freaked out,” Terra held his forehead. “He used healing magic to stop the bleeding and then had to carry me back inside. Didn’t you try to get carried too?” 

“I did! I was always jealous when he let you ride on his back and not me.” Aqua shook her head. “But I walked beside you, holding tight to his robes. He was so calm,” she smiled wide. “I was so fascinated by how he wrapped the bandage.” 

“I don’t even remember past him taking me inside, I think I passed out.” Terra laughed. 

“You did!” Aqua laughed too. “I had to sit on a chair next to you until you woke up to make sure you didn’t do anything dumb.” 

“I did used to have a tendency to do that.” 

“Used to?” Aqua raised a brow. 

“Okay, rude.” Terra stuck out his tongue. 

The duo chuckled together, leaning closer together. Aqua saw Terra’s open hand on his knee, and she placed her hand on his. Terra stopped in his tracks, looking at their hands, then looking at Aqua’s soft face. 

“If Eraqus could take care of us, we can take care of one baby.” She smiled. She moved her fingers to entwine with his. “We’re gonna do everything we can for this baby. It’s what Eraqus would do.” 

“Aqua I”- Terra didn’t know how to respond. “Yeah. Yeah, we’re gonna find a place where this baby can grow as big and strong as us.” 

“Together.” Aqua squeezed his hand. 

“Together.” Terra nodded. 

Aqua let go, standing back up. “Let’s get back to Ven and tell him our plan.” 

“Sounds like a good idea.” Terra followed suit, picking up the baby. “Question though, what exactly is the plan?” 

“Tell all the keyblade weilders and come up with a plan as a group. It’s clear we need help, so we can send out a mass call to arms tomorrow to meet at the Land of Departure.” 

“Until then, we just take care of the girl the best we can.” 

“Exactly.” Aqua nodded. “So let’s go get some rest. It’s been a long day.”


	4. The Plan

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's never a great idea to have everyone in one place, but Terra and Aqua are desperate for some help.

“What part exactly of this plan makes sense again?” Vanitas threw a ball against a wall, letting it bounce back in his hand. 

“Two heads are better than one, and even more are unstoppable.” Aqua held the baby in her arms, gently rocking her. 

“All of us saved your butt, didn’t we?” Ventus joked. 

Vanitas grumbled, holding the ball and sitting up. “But only one of me needs to aim this ball perfectly to knock you out.” 

“You know I have keyblade armor?” Ventus raised a brow. 

“I also know that you two should not be threatening each other.” Terra swiped the ball from Vanitas, who bared his teeth. “Aren’t you two the same person or something? Shouldn’t you get along super easily?” 

“It doesn’t work like that, you neanderthal.” Vanitas crossed his arms, sinking into his seat. 

“Vanitas,” Aqua spoke sternly. 

“I’ll shut up,” he sighed. “But I will not apologize.” 

“Anywho,” Terra spoke again. “We’re gonna call everyone right after breakfast, so I suggest we all get some rest tonight.” 

“Why do I have to come to this event again?” Vanitas whined. 

“Because you live here.” Ventus spoke. “It concerns you directly. 

Vanitas collapsed dramatically across his chair. “I truly will never find happiness.” 

“I’m choosing to ignore that,” Aqua spoke under her breath. “Me and Terra are gonna go up with the baby. Would you mind if we took Chirithy again tonight?” 

“Of course!” Ventus happily exclaimed. “They were gushing about how cute the baby is, I’m sure they would be up for it. I’ll go get them.” He hopped down from his chair and jogged through the halls. 

“You want a flood?” Vanitas lazily remarked. 

“I think we’ll pass tonight,” Terra answered. 

“Your loss.” Vanitas stood up and drug his feet. “Night, losers.” 

As the boys left, Terra leaned close to Aqua. “Are you sure it’s alright if I sleep with you again tonight?” 

“I would be greatly disappointed if you didn’t.” Aqua smiled up at him. “After all, I need help with the baby.” 

“Alright,” Terra smiled back. He offered a hand to help Aqua up, picked up the basket and bag of baby things, and led them down to the bedroom. Chirithy waited at the door, greeting them with a chipper squeak. 

The duo got ready the same way they did before- placing the baby in the basket on the desk, changing clothes separately, laying on their side of the bed. 

The night went smoothly. The baby woke them up twice, but quickly fell asleep after the problem was fixed, with the assistance of Chirithy. They had managed to lay close together as the night went on. By the last time they went back to sleep after helping the baby, Aqua immediately went back to curling into Terra’s side. She hadn’t thought anything of it, just wanting to be comfortable again- but Terra had to stop the bubbling in his chest from making him do something dumb. They were close friends. He just wanted to know she was happy and safe beside him. 

He squeezed her shoulders, and she curled tighter, a small noise escaping her. He wondered if she could hear his pounding heart. 

Terra woke up first, but only by a moment. He watched Aqua blink her eyes open, her face quickly turning red when she realized where she was. 

“Good morning, Aqua.” Terra smiled. 

“Good morning, Terra.” She sighed and smirked. She hesitated before moving away, jumping up to check on the baby. 

“How’s she doing?” Terra pushed himself up. 

“Still asleep,” Aqua pet Chirithy’s head, who purred in their sleep. “Did you wanna go ahead and get ready? I’ll bring the baby downstairs and start breakfast.” 

“Are you sure? I can keep an eye on her first.” Terra offered. 

Aqua waved her hand. “Go ahead, your breath stinks.” She chuckled to herself. Terra was about to object, but knew she was right. “I’ll be in the kitchen.” 

Terra stood and watched as she left. There was something about her that was so beautiful in this domestic setting. It was so rare to see her with her guard down, especially recently. To see her with bedhead and a sleepy smile and baggy clothes made his heart race. 

He shook the thoughts from his head, heading down the hall to the bathroom. Ventus was already there, brushing through his hair. 

“Oh hey,” Ventus pulled at a knot. “How’d you guys sleep?” 

“Great, thanks to Chiri. Did you sleep alright?” Terra brushed his hair as well. 

“Yeah, no worries. A nightmare did come, but it wasn’t anything bad. I saw Vanitas in pink armor.” 

“You’re telling me that’s not a bad nightmare?” Terra belly laughed. Ventus punched his arm. He pushed himself up onto the counter and swung his legs. 

“So how’s sleeping with Aqua?” Ventus pried. 

Terra choked on his spit. “Please rephrase that,” he coughed. 

“Sleeping in the same bed as Aqua,” Ventus rolled his eyes. 

Terra took a deep breath. “It’s been fine. It’s just to take care of the baby, it’s nothing to talk about.” His face betrayed him, turning a shade pinker. 

“Dude, real talk.” Ventus grabbed Terra’s hairbrush. Terra slumped and looked at the boy. “Have you told her yet?” 

“...give me back my hairbrush, Ven.” 

“You haven’t!” Ventus held the brush out of Terra’s reach. “Why not? It’s so obvious!” 

“It’s not that easy.” Terra gesticulated. 

“It kind of is,” Ventus cleared his throat, making his voice deeper. “Aqua, I am in love with you, and have been for years.” 

“It hasn’t been years,” Terra sighed. 

Ventus looked at him incredulously. Terra swiped for his brush again, which Ventus held higher. 

“Whatever happened to Smooth Terra? The ‘You never stopped lighting my way back’ Terra?” Ventus asked. 

“Smooth Terra spent ten years in an old bastard’s head trying to come up with that line!” 

Ventus had to stop himself from laughing, knowing that while the sentence was absurd, it was sincere. But Terra cracked a smile at the dumb sentence, and the two of them laughed. Ventus tossed the brush back to Terra, who juggled it a bit before holding it properly. 

“I know you want the best for me and Aqua. And I really appreciate it, Ven, I do. But maybe after this baby stuff is figured out. I don’t want her any more stressed than she already is.” Terra calmly explained. 

“That’s fair.” Ventus hopped off the counter. “Listen man, I’m here to wingman anytime you need me.” 

Terra shook his head. “Reassuring.” 

“Better than nothing.” Ventus stuck out his tongue. “See ya downstairs.” He have a half-hearted salute and stepped out. 

Terra shook the conversation out of his head. The baby came first right now, no matter what. He just hoped this meeting would help. 

—

The rest of the morning went fairly quickly. Aqua was clearly tense- she always was whenever she knew the others would be visiting. And under these circumstances, Terra could see her start to panic inside. 

“I’m gonna send out the call.” Aqua sat at her empty plate. She opened the group chat and held her finger over the button. She suddenly slid the phone across the counter to Terra. “I can’t do it, you do it.” 

Terra did without a second thought. The video started as he swallowed down his last bit of food. “Hey everyone! Terra coming in. Obviously. You know I don’t know why we say our names when you can see us,” Terra looked over at Aqua, who suddenly had her head in her hands. “Anyways, I need everyone to report to the Land of Departure ASAP. Me and Aqua’s last mission hit a bump and we need all hands on deck. So we will see you all soon! Save travels.” Terra stopped the video and sent it out, handing the phone back to Aqua. 

“You’re going to be the death of me.” Aqua reluctantly taking her phone. She took a small breath through her nose. “Ven, could you make sure Vanitas is decent?” 

“Yeah, sure.” Ven finished cleaning his plate and activated his keyblade armor. 

“Don’t you think that’s a little overkill?” She raised a brow. 

“You wake him up then.” 

Terra laughed. Aqua shook her head. “Please don’t kill each other, okay?” 

“Yes, ma’am.” Ventus nodded, jogging down the halls and up the stairs. 

“Are you sure you’re up for this?” Terra leaned across and held her hand. 

“I have to be.” She looked over at the basket, the baby awake but quiet. “Should we like... Hide her? Until everyone gets here?” 

Terra shook his head. “I think you’re overthinking it. We can just explain the bare minimum whenever people come in, and then go into more detail when everyone gets here.” 

“Alright,” she nodded. “Thank you.” 

“I’m right here.” Terra smiled. 

They sat in silence for a few minutes. Suddenly there was a deafening clamor of metal-on-metal upstairs, followed by the two boys darting into the kitchen. Ventus still wore his armor, and Vanitas held his keyblade, his blanket hanging off his body like a cape. 

“Boys!” Aqua jumped up. 

“I did not consent to this filth coming into my room!” Vanitas hissed. 

“How else was I supposed to wake you up? You sleep like a rock!” 

Terra grabbed Vanitas by his shirt collar, lifting him up like a cat. He flailed and hissed, cursing violently. Ventus disengaged his armor and started laughing at the sight, doubling over and pointing at him. 

“Vanitas, we’ve been over this, we need you this morni- Ven, stop laughing,” Aqua rubbed her temples. “For one morning, could you two please behave? This is important!” 

“I’ll calm down if I can sic a flood on his ass!” Vanitas growled. 

“If you summon an unversed, I will confiscate your music player,” Terra threatened. 

Vanitas froze a moment. “That’s not fair! Why is everyone here so cruel? I’m a healing, growing boy, you all need to be nice to me!” 

The baby started crying randomly at this moment, startling everyone in the room. 

“See? You even make tiny people cry!” Vanitas pointed at it. 

Aqua rushed to cradle the baby in her arms, hushing and bouncing it. “Vanitas, sit your ass down and behave. When the others get here, I expect you to be attentive and helpful. This situation affects you directly.” 

Vanitas’s eyes went wide when Aqua cursed. Terra dropped him to the floor, and Vanitas grumpily complied and sat down on the couch. Aqua looked over at Ventus, and before she could speak, he held up his hands in retreat and sat next to Vanitas. 

Terra went to speak just as the doorbell rang out. “I’ll get it,” he jogged over and opened the door. Sora, Riku, Namine, and Kairi filed inside, and the tense air was immediately gone. 

“Hey guys!” Sora excitedly waved. “What’s going on?” 

“Yeah, you said you had a bump on your last mission?” Kairi sat next to Ventus. Sora sat next to her on the couch’s armrest, and Riku stood silently beside him. Namine quietly sat on the floor next to a sleeping Chirithy, scratching behind their ears. 

Aqua had managed to calm the baby down and hid her back in the basket, entering the living room as well. “If it’s alright, we want to see if the others are coming first, so we only have to explain it once.” 

“Of course!” Kairi nodded. 

“Is everyone safe?” Riku asked. 

“Yeah, no worries.” Terra waved it off. “It’s more like- we found a curious object. Let’s leave it at that for now.” 

Sora’s eyes shone like stars, ever curious. “Is it a material? Like for synthesis? Have you talked to the moogles yet?” 

“I don’t think the moogles’ll help with this one,” Ventus nervously laughed. 

“They might kill it.” Vanitas spoke to himself. Ventus elbowed his side. 

“Did the others tell you when they should get here?” Aqua asked. 

“Yeah, Lea said they left shortly after we did.” Kairi swung her legs. “They’ll be here any minute.” 

Another knock on the door. 

“Like right now.” Namine giggled. 

Terra opened the door again, letting in Lea, Roxas, Xion, and Isa. 

“Don’t worry everyone, the party can finally start.” Lea joked as he strode inside. Isa held the bridge of his nose. 

“Thank you for coming,” Aqua bowed. “All of you.” 

“What’s this about an issue?” Isa asked. Roxas and Xion sat beside Namine as the other two stood on the outside. 

“Well,” Terra began. He looked over at Aqua, who nodded that she was ready. “Aqua and I were on a mission two days ago to eliminate a threat of darkness in Traverse Town. After a great deal of searching, we found the source- a huge pile of lower level heartless in the middle of the town. We took care of it without issue. But what we found inside the pile has been troubling us.” Terra nodded back to Aqua, who grabbed the basket. “We didn’t even tell Yen Sid about it.” 

Aqua grabbed the baby from the basket and cradled her in her arms. The room fell silent for a minute, everyone’s eyes wide. 

“What the fuck?” Lea spoke. 

Everyone turned to him, cursing his name. 

“What? I’m not the only one thinking that! How the hell did heartless swarm a baby in the middle of the street? That doesn’t make any damn sense!” 

“That’s the problem.” Terra spoke up. “We don’t know what to do.” 

“We spent the entire day yesterday going door to door at Traverse, and no one even has a lead.” Aqua added. “She doesn’t belong to anyone, it seems.” 

“Why can’t you ask Yen Sid?” Riku asked. 

“We’re afraid he’ll disapprove of us taking her in, as we don’t know if the baby is dangerous. I mean, we found her unharmed in a pile of heartless. It’s fair to assume something might be fishy.” Terra explained. 

“We also don’t want to cause her any harm. I mean, she’s just a baby. And I’m afraid Yen Sid might take measures that I wouldn’t agree with.” Aqua held the baby tighter. 

“Do you really think he’d hurt the baby?” Xion asked, concerned. 

“I mean he’s a dick, but I don’t think he’s that much of a dick.” Roxas replied. 

“Don’t talk about an old master like that,” Aqua spoke sternly. 

“What? He is. I don’t think he has an emotional bone in his body.” Roxas defended. 

“I mean, he did kinda save our lives that one time.” Sora shrugged. “You weren’t there- or I guess you kinda were since you were with me?- but he like, made a path for all of us to escape when we got surrounded by heartless.” 

“Could have used him again before the whole Xehanort battle. Pretty sure he could have done something about the whole me dying and you being lost for so long.” Kairi grumbled. “I always preferred Merlin.” 

“I don’t think Merlin would be much help right now,” Riku interjected. 

“Can I ask something?” Namine spoke up. 

Everyone turned to her, and she took the silence as a yes, even as she got a little flustered at the attention. 

“What exactly are we trying to do with the baby?” She shifted where she sat. “Are we finding her original parents? Finding a new family? Finding out where she came from? Because it seems like there isn’t anyone claiming her.” 

Aqua and Terra looked at each other, eyes wide. 

“No one here knows what’s happening,” Vanitas groaned. “Can I please leave?” 

“You live here.” Ventus crossed his brow. 

“I wish I didn’t.” Vanitas sunk into the cushion. “Let’s just leave the baby back at Traverse, someone else will take the problem.” 

“We can’t ignore the fact we found it surrounded by heartless,” Aqua explained. “We need to be able to know where she is so that we can keep an eye on her and the heartless around her.” 

“I mean, you could raise her.” Lea shrugged. 

“What?” Aqua squeaked. Terra froze. “We don’t know how to raise a baby!” 

“I used to babysit.” Kairi raised her hand. “Back when I went to school still, I did it for extra munny. I could teach you.” 

Aqua flustered. She looked desperately at Terra to speak sense, but he had nothing to say. 

“And you have enough munny,” Isa added. “It’s actually quite easy to come by in this line of work. And you upkeep this castle just fine.” 

“We’re constantly out on missions, it could be dangerous for her to stay here.” Terra rebutted. 

“Actually, shouldn’t it be the safest place?” Xion asked. “I mean, you are Master Keyblade weilders.” 

“We all knew Aqua and Terra would have a baby at some point,” Lea joked. The duo turned red. 

“We-we aren’t even together!” Terra waved his hands. “B-besides”- 

“Wait, you’re not?” Lea asked. “I just assumed.” 

“Maybe if Terra grew a pair,” Vanitas laughed. 

“I will not hesitate to murder two lights right here and right now,” Terra hid his face. 

Aqua put the baby back down in the basket. “We need need an actual plan here, guys. That’s why we called you.” 

“I thought this was an actual plan,” Sora asked. “You could keep an eye on the baby, and all of us would be willing to help out.” 

“Not me,” Vanitas grumbled. 

“I don’t trust myself with a kid,” Riku scratched his neck. “Feel like I’d break it somehow.” 

“I can’t take care of children,” Isa mumbled. “Ask Lea.” 

“He set our house on fire! It was awesome!” Lea jumped up. Isa smacked him alongside the head. 

“Most of us would be willing to help,” Sora put emphasis on the beginning. “Like you said, we don’t know how it survived a heartless ambush. If something is happening, you two would be the most qualified to handle it.” 

“But-” Aqua stuttered, looking for a rebuttal. “Terra and I aren’t equipped physically or emotionally, and… Ven! What do you think of all this?” 

Ventus sat like a meerkat at his name. “Oh, I uh, I don’t really see a problem. They’re making a lot of sense. And I have Chiri, they love taking care of her. I think it’d be pretty awesome, to be honest.” 

Aqua realized she had been shaking, her chest suddenly very heavy. “E-excuse me,” she quickly ducked out of the room. 

It went silent. Everyone suddenly realized that a boundary had been crossed, but no one knew what to do. 

“I’ll be right back,” Terra ducked out as well. “House is open, do as you please.” 

Terra ran down the halls. He knew she had gone to her room. He stood frozen in front of the door a moment, unsure if he should continue. When he heard the gentle sob, he knew he had to check on her. He lightly rapped at the door. 

“Go away,” Aqua murmured. 

“It’s me.” Terra spoke. 

There was a moment of silence, long enough to make Terra question if she had heard him. Suddenly, the door unlocked with a click, but didn’t open. 

Terra waited another moment, cracking open the door. When no argument was made, he slipped inside and locked the door again. Aqua was under the covers, a giant pile of blankets hiding her frame. He took a breath, rounding to his side of the bed. He gently raised the covers, crawling underneath them too. It was too dark to see under them, but he didn’t know if he could handle seeing her in this state right now. 

Another moment of silence passed, both unsure what to say. 

“I’ll hurt her.” 

“What?” Terra asked. 

“I’m scared. I’ll hurt her.” Aqua spoke up, curling into herself. 

“Why in the world-”

“I was in the Darkworld for ten years, Terra.” He could hear her voice crack. “I… I don’t know what I could do. There might still be a part of darkness within me. There might still be a chance of me falling back to it. I might…” her voice trailed off. 

“I have the same fear.” Terra stated. 

“Really?” 

“I have had darkness in me for a long time. I couldn’t become a master because of it. I assisted with Eraqus’s murder because of it. I was possessed and torn apart because of it. I… I hurt you and Ventus because of it. And I can still feel it within me. I’m scared every day of hurting you again. I couldn’t live with myself. And if there was a baby in the picture…” Terra trailed off. 

“But you’ve gotten so much stronger.” Aqua spoke. “I can still see darkness within your heart, yes. But I watch you fight. I see how you care for Ven. I see how- how you care for me. I mean, you’re right here beside me. You haven’t left my side since that damned graveyard. You have learned and matured from ten years ago. I trust my life in your hands.” 

“Then why can’t you trust yourself?” Terra asked. “I was possessed by Xehanort, and you trust me. I feel like I have the better end of the deal here. I can give all of my trust to a badass woman who fought off the most powerful darkness for years- without a keyblade!-and managed to still return to the realm of light.” 

He could hear a small chuckle from her. He reached out his hands, and Aqua found them, entwining their fingers and squeezing tight. 

“Thank you.” Aqua whispered. 

“I’m always here for you.” Terra rubbed his thumbs in circles. “We can do anything. Including taking care of this baby.” 

“Do you really think so?” 

“I know it.” 

There was a pause. “Terra?” 

“Aqua?” 

“I…” she hesitated. “I just wanted to say that, I...” 

“The baby!” Terra jumped up, the covers flying. 

“What?” Aqua squeaked. She crawled out of the blankets. 

“The baby is still downstairs!”

“Yes, with our friends,” Aqua rubbed her face of tears. 

“Yeah, and Vanitas,” Terra explained, “and Sora, and all of the Twilight Town group,” 

“She’s okay.” Aqua reassured. “It’s not like Vanitas is going to puke an Unversed on her.” 

“We should still get back down there.” 

“Alright.” Aqua nodded. She quickly made herself presentable again, and the duo ran back to the living room. 

“Woah, where’s the fire?” Lea raised a brow. Nothing had changed. Vanitas had gone back to his room, Riku taking his spot on the couch. Lea and Isa now sat on the floor with the other kids. 

“Is she okay?” Terra asked. 

“Who?” Lea glanced at all the women in the room. 

“The baby.” 

“Oh!” Kairi spoke up. She unraveled a blanket on her lap, revealing the baby. “I have her. She’s okay.” 

They breathed relief. “Thank you, Kairi.” Aqua spoke. 

“I love kids, and this one is so well behaved! She’s just the cutest. Does she have a name?” 

“Name?” Terra repeated. 

“We hadn’t thought about it.” Aqua admitted. “We didn’t think we’d be taking care of her.” 

“Do you think you will now?” Namine asked. 

Terra looked at Aqua, who nodded. “I think we will try our best to. At least until further notice. We still have hope that someone will claim her, but until then. She’s ours.” 

“We’ll figure out how to break the news to all the others, including Yen Sid. I mean,” Aqua looked at Terra. “A couple white lies won’t hurt them- they don’t need to know about the heartless.” 

Ventus jumped up, a wide smile on his face. “Are you guys serious?” 

“Yes.” Aqua nodded, and so did Terra. 

“I’ll do everything I can to help!” Ventus fist pumped the air. “Oh my gosh does that make me an uncle? I wanna be Uncle Ventus!” 

“Maybe don’t go that far”- Terra nervously laughed. 

“I’ll be Aunt Kairi!” She smiled wide. She wiggled her finger in front of the baby’s face, the baby trying to grab at it. 

“Does that make us all aunts and uncles?” Sora asked. 

“I call the fun uncle.” Lea raised his hand. 

“Axel, you can barely take care of yourself!” Roxas teased. 

“That’s why it’ll be fun.” He winked. 

“G-guys…” Aqua flushed. Terra nudged her, leaning close to her ear. 

“Just let them have their fun. I still have hope we’ll find her parents. But until then, we could use these aunts’ and uncles’ help.” 

Aqua nodded with a small grunt. “Okay.”

The baby began to be restless, acting like it was about to cry. Kairi shushed it at the others talked around her, bouncing it in her arms. Aqua noticed and leaned next to her. 

“Mind if I take her?” She smiled. 

“Please,” Kairi chuckled, passing the baby over. “I think she’s hungry. Do you have her on a schedule?” 

“Should we?” Aqua took her, beginning to bounce her. 

“It seems like the baby kinda keeps the schedule itself usually,” Kairi thought back. “But you’ll probably see a pattern in the times she wants food and sleep, so it helps to keep track of it to plan around it.” 

“That makes sense,” Aqua nodded. “Thank you. Hey, do you mind if me and Terra text you with questions? You seem to know this a bit better than we do.” 

“Of course! My phone’s always by me.” Kairi’s eyes lit up. 

“Thank you so much.” Aqua beamed. 

Terra coughed to get the attention of the chaotic room. “The rest of the house is open,” he gestured toward the archway. “Including the training area.” 

“I could always spar,” Roxas stood up and rolled his shoulders. “Who wants to go against me? Axel!” 

“Nah, I’m still recovering from the last time you kicked my ass.” He stuck out his tongue. 

“I’d love to watch,” Namine curled up. “I can’t really fight any yet.” 

“I’ll take you on!” Sora hopped up, pointing at Roxas dramatically. “Care to watch, Kairi? Riku?” 

Kairi nodded, gentleness in her eyes. Riku huffed a laugh. “I’ll watch ya get the snot knocked out of you, sure.” 

“Hey!” Sora slouched. 

“Perhaps we should all get some practice in,” Isa spoke, reading Aqua and Terra’s body language. 

“I’d like that.” Xion stood up, helping Namine up as well. 

The group began to funnel out of the room, moving their chatter outside. 

“I’ll catch ya later, guys!” Ventus called after the crowd. Isa grabbed the back of his shirt and drug him along. “Hey, wait”- Isa leaned in close and whispered to him. Ven took back control and nodded, walking along with the group. Terra and Aqua and the baby were the only ones left. Aqua sat on the couch with the baby, trying to calm her down. 

“Could you grab me a bottle?” Aqua asked. 

“Sure thing.” Terra dipped out a moment, coming back with formula. He sat down close to Aqua, handing the bottle to her. She began feeding the baby, who calmed down as she ate. Terra noticed Aqua’s bouncing leg, an obvious sign of her raising anxiety. Terra gently laid his hand on her knee. 

“It’s going to be alright.” He spoke softly. 

“I know,” she shook her head. “I just”- she paused. “I don’t know.” 

“I never know anything.” Terra joked. Aqua huffed a laugh. “Listen, no matter what happens with us and this baby, I’m right here beside you. We’re gonna figure this out together, one step at a time.” 

Aqua took a deep breath. She leaned onto Terra’s shoulder, still holding the baby steady. Terra reached around her, pulling her tight. Their eyes were locked on the nursing child. 

“We should probably name her,” Terra spoke. 

“It feels weird, to name a child that isn’t ours.” 

“It kind of is ours. For the time being.” Terra shrugged. “She won’t know the difference. She’s so small that a brief name change won’t hurt. We need something to call her by.” 

Aqua was silent a moment. “I suppose you’re right. Did you have any ideas?” 

Terra hummed. “Well, we have Terra, Aqua, and Ventus- what about Ignis?” 

“That’s a terrible name,” Aqua giggled. 

“I thought it was cool!” Terra defended, lightheartedly nudging her. “Did you have a name?” 

Aqua thought a moment, looking back down at the baby. “Stella.” 

Terra humbly smiled, a warmth in his chest growing. “That’s way better, you’re right.” 

“You think Stella will be okay?” Aqua asked, looked back up at Terra. 

“I think Stella will be more than okay.” He searched in her piercing blue eyes. 

Aqua laid her head back down on his side. “Thank you for always calming me down.” 

“Like I said, I’ll always be by your side.”


	5. Training

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everyone fights each other, but like in a fun and healthy way.

The duo (and Stella) walked out to the training area. Everyone was congregated around a large open area, sitting on the grass. Roxas was currently sparring with Xion. Although it looked like Roxas was winning, she was giving him a run for his money. The others shouted tips from the side, cheering them on. Terra and Aqua sat on the outskirts, setting Stella down beside them in her basket. 

Isa leaned over to Aqua. “Everything alright?” 

“Yes,” she smiled. “Thank you for having everyone leave.” 

“Not a problem,” he nodded. “I could see you needed a moment alone.” 

“We appreciate it.” Terra chimes in. “We miss anything?” 

“Roxas has beat Sora, Ventus, and almost Xion. We’re taking turns.” 

Terra snorted. “Headstrong kid.” 

“Reminds me of someone,” Aqua looked at Terra. 

There was a pause as he connected the dots. “Hey!” He squeaked defensively. He clapped his hand over his mouth at his voice crack. Aqua and Isa laughed. 

Xion called out mercy, putting down her keyblade and holding out her hand. Roxas took it, pulling her tight in a hug. After pulling away, Xion cast cure on herself, the grass getting greener where she stood. She shook herself off and took her seat with the booing crowd. 

“Who wants a piece of me now?” Roxas grinned playfully as he raised his arms in victory. 

“Come on, you can take him,” Sora nudged Kairi. 

“M-me? No, I really don’t think”- 

“You kicked my ass enough times,” Lea joked. “You could do it!” 

“Well, I-”

“I’ll take him.” Terra stood up, stretching and cracking the bones up his spine. The kids all gasped in intrigue. 

“Hell yeah! Now we’re talkin’!” Roxas spinned his keyblades in his hands. 

The crowd erupted as Terra took his place across from Roxas. There was a chorus of cheers for Terra, while Namine’s small voice cheered on Roxas. He winked at her, and she flushed a deep red. 

“We doing normal rules?” Terra rolled his shoulders. 

“Yeah,” Roxas took his stance. “Best two outta three. Ready?” 

Terra summoned his keyblade. “More than ever, kid.” 

Isa called out, “Ready? Set? ...Go!” 

Roxas lunged first, Terra blocking it, sparks flying from the blades. He pushed Roxas, who jumped backward. 

“Already better than Ven,” Roxas teased. 

“I heard that!” Ventus called out. Terra snorted. 

Roxas lunged again, Terra blocking the blades and pulling them down. The blades erupted up, springing backward. Roxas swiftly spun, one of the blades tagging Terra’s hip. A wave of jeers came from the crowd. Roxas chuckled to himself. 

“Quick,” Terra held his hip, pulling himself back into stance. “But speed isn’t everything, kid.” 

Roxas rolled his eyes. “Then what else you got?” He smirked. 

Terra ducked down and swung toward his feet, Roxas jumping above the blade. As his eyes followed the blade, Terra swung his leg around and tripped him. Roxas fell, but never touched the ground. 

Terra’s keyblade glowed, the effects of Gravira holding Roxas prone above the ground. Terra calmly tapped his blade against Roxas’s side, who suddenly fell hard to the ground. The crowd cheered for Terra as Roxas gained back his footing. He held his side, the air knocked out of him. 

“Smooth,” Roxas grinned. He swung a blade up screaming, “Fira!” 

A ring of fire blazed from the ground around Terra. He instinctively blocked with his keyblade, Roxas’s swings blindly clashing with him. He screwed his eyes shut, attempting different attacks in his mind. His body moved faster than his brain. “Blizzaga!” 

A burst of ice rippled across the grass, the fire immediately dampened. Terra could see his breath. Roxas was shocked, and immediately thrust his keyblade forward. 

But he didn’t move. Roxas desperately pulled at his legs, confused why he was frozen. He panicked and looked down, seeing blocks of ice trapping his feet to the ground. Before Roxas thought to ready his blades again, Terra tapped his key to his hip. He snapped his fingers, and the ice shattered, melting into the dirt. 

The crowd screamed in celebration, chanting Terra’s name. He awkwardly bowed before picking Roxas back up and casting cure. 

“You know this means I gotta take you again, right?” Roxas chuckled. “Gotta keep my reputation here.” 

Terra shook his head with a grin. “Sure, kid. You’ll be a Master yet.” 

“Wait, do you think so?” Roxas’s eyes shined. 

“Hell yeah, dude!” Terra offered his hand, and they fist bumped. 

“Terra!” Ventus yelled from the sideline. “Do the thing!” 

Terra flushed and waved him away. “Nah, not doing that!” He belly laughed. 

“Aw, Terra!” Ventus whined. The others joined in. 

“Yeah, Terra!” “What is the thing?” “I don’t know.” “I wanna see a thing!” “Would you all behave?” 

“Come on, Terra! Let them see it!” Aqua’s voice chimed like bells. The words shot Terra like an arrow. 

“Okay, okay guys! I’ll do it.” He tried to hush everyone. Roxas stepped back as a hush fell. Terra rolled his eyes. He stretched out his shoulders a moment before suddenly flipping backward, landing on his hands. He pushed his entire body vertically up and down, and the kids went wild. He balanced on one hand, and the group erupted even louder. Aqua clapped and cheered him on with the kids, even though she was trying to look anywhere else than Terra. 

He hopped back onto his feet and bowed again. Sora hopped up and ran toward him. “You gotta teach me that! That was so cool! Wait, can I do that?” Sora jumped and tried to land on his hands before Terra could stop him, landing on his face. He laid on the grass a moment, raising a thumbs up to show he was okay. The kids laughed and joined them on the field. Kairi helped pick Sora back up as the others surrounded Terra, asking him how he trained. 

Aqua looked on with a smile. Lea leaned on Isa, watching Roxas and Xion climb over each other. A tug in her chest made her rest her hand in Stella’s basket. 

She felt fur. She knew exactly what it was- it was the same oily and matted fur she had encountered everyday. She slowly turned her head to check, knowing it couldn’t be what she thought. 

An unversed, a Hareraiser to be exact. It was curled up next to the sleeping Stella, its ears wrapped warmly around her. Stella hugged around the Hareraiser’s head, like it was a stuffed animal. 

Unsure what to do, Aqua slowly removed her hand, not waking either party in the basket. Anxiety bubbling in her chest, she scrambled to her feet and shook Isa and Lea. 

“What in the-” Isa looked up, his eyes widening with concern. He shot up to his feet to hold the shaking Aqua steady, Lea falling to the dirt. Lea begrudgingly pushed himself up, dusting off his pants. 

“Where’s the fire?” Lea crossed his brow, realizing the situation. 

Aqua pointed to the basket, mouthing words, but nothing coming out. 

“She’s having a panic attack.” Isa spoke. “Check on the baby for me, okay?” He held Aqua closer, letting her lean on him. 

“Right.” Lea nodded, jogging the few feet between them. He froze when he could see inside the basket. He struggled with if he should summon his keyblade or not, deciding not to. “Terra!” 

Terra looked up like a meerkat at his name. He saw Lea wave him over. He calmly told the kids to be careful as they practiced handstands before running over to him. “What’s going on?” 

“Your kid is a demonspawn, is what’s going on.” Lea pointed to the basket. 

“What the hell are you-” Terra looked inside. The duo slept soundly together. Terra stepped back, shaking his head before snapping it back to Lea. “Aqua. Where’s Aqua?” 

Lea pointed over to her and Isa. “She’s not great. Listen man, I’m not really sure what to do here.” 

“I don’t know either,” Terra breathed. He spoke up, directed to Lea. “Tell Ven to get Vanitas and bring his ass out here. Go with him if you need. Drag him out here by his heels. I need answers.” Lea nodded quickly, scrambling over the the group of kids. When he saw Ventus talking to Lea, he took in a deep breath and ran to Aqua. 

“T-Terra!” Isa let go of Aqua as she collapsed into Terra’s arms. “Stella!” 

“I know, I know.” His voice was deep and smooth. “Vanitas is coming out now. He’ll explain it.” 

“Is she safe? Is someone watching her?” 

“She’s fine, Aqua.” Terra ran his hands through her hair. “Isa, keep an eye on the baby.” 

“On it.” Isa nodded and jogged over. He summoned his weapon and stuck it in the ground. 

Terra calmly hushed Aqua, reassuring her the best he could. He wished he could remember those meditation practices she always did. She slowly regained her breath and curled tight into Terra’s chest. 

By now, the kids on the grounds had noticed the commotion. Riku had become the temporary leader due to being the oldest, and they all looked to him for guidance on what to do. He assured everything would be okay, telling them to wait until anything was clearly wrong to intervene. Xion fell on her face from a handstand at that moment, Namine too distracted to hold her up. The rest of the group half-heartedly continued the practice. 

A boy fell from the sky, screaming bloody murder. His body laid motionless for a moment on the dirt. He slowly sat up, popping off his helmet, his ink black hair popping out of it. He inhaled and screamed, “WHAT THE EVER LOVING FUCK”. 

“Terra said to!” Lea’s voice traveled from a window in the castle above. 

“I’LL KILL YOU BOTH!” Vanitas jumped up, summoning his keyblade. Riku grabbed the back of his shirt. 

“I don’t think you will.” Riku spoke. 

“Do you want some too, pretty boy?” Vanitas hissed. Riku pointed across the field. His gaze followed the direction, right to an incredibly pissed and crying Aqua, staring venom into his soul. “What the hell did I do now?” 

“I’d just go ask. Play nice.” Riku patted his head, walking back to the group of kids. 

Vanitas groaned and shuffled over to Terra and Aqua. Isa had gently picked up the basket and brought it closer to the couple. Vanitas held his arms above his head, his voice already tired. “I don’t know what I did, but it did NOT warrant two assholes kicking me out of a fourth story window.” 

“I think it did.” Aqua spat. 

Terra squeezed her shoulder. “Do you mind telling me what’s in the baby’s basket?” 

Vanitas looked over, seeing the Hareraiser. “Oh. Huh.” 

“That’s all you have to say?” Aqua shrieked. 

Vanitas took a step back from her. “What do you want me to do about it?” 

“The unversed are dangerous! They’ve killed people!” 

“I know.” 

“So get it away from the infant child!” 

“It’s not hurting her.” 

“Yet!” Aqua took a deep breath to steady herself. “Please, Vani. Please take your unversed and keep them away from her.” 

“Contrary to popular belief,” Vanitas crouched next to the basket. “I don’t really have control over these things. I didn’t sit in my room and say ‘damn, I want one of those rabbits to hang out with the tiny one- Janet, go do that’. I’ve gotten better at consolidating, but I don’t control their behavior or where they end up.” He poked at the Hareraiser, whose red eyes begrudgingly opened. “Janet. Up and at ‘em. Go somewhere else. Shoo.” The hareraiser closed its eyes again, shaking its head and moving closer to Stella. 

Terra moved closer to better see. “You’ve said that all of these unversed are made from your emotions. What’s this one, then?” 

“It’s being overprotective and shy.” Vanitas waved him off. “I don’t know, it just happens.” 

“Is…” Aqua’s voice was softer. “Does that mean you like Stella? And want to protect her?” 

Vanitas snapped backwards with fire in his eyes. “I don’t care about this little shit! I’m not curious about how it works or what it does at all! It’s useless to me!” The hareraiser squeaked quietly. “Shut up you!” 

Terra and Aqua looked hesitantly at each other. Terra shrugged, and Aqua sighed. “Family,” Terra mouthed. 

Aqua crossed her arms, trying to calm down still. “Please take the unv- Janet, away for now, if you can.” 

“Trying here.” Vanitas used his hands like a crane, prying the rabbit away. It loosened its ears, pulling up the blanket above Stella as it was raised up and away. Vanitas placed it on the ground. “Shoo,” he waved his hands. The unversed spun into a blip, and with a tiny flash of light, disappeared. 

“Thank you.” Aqua smiled. 

“Yeah, whatever.” Vanitas rolled his eyes. “Can I go back in my room now? Or will you try and kill me again?” 

“Go ahead.” Terra nodded back to the castle. “Get some sleep.” 

“Thank you.” Vanitas spoke with sarcasm dripping from his words. 

As Vanitas walked away, Riku hesitantly walked up to Terra. “Everything okay?” 

Terra blinked at him, realizing the rest of the kids stared intently on to know the situation. He couldn’t help but give a half-hearted laugh. “Everything’s perfectly fine. Vanitas is just happy to be an uncle, too.” 

“He just had to show it in is own weird, terrifying way.” Aqua shook her head.


	6. Plan B

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Terra and Aqua realize that the search for Stella's parents is fruitless.

“It’s been a whole week.” 

Terra blinked as he heard Aqua’s voice. “What was that?” 

“It’s been a week since we found Stella, and we still haven’t had any luck finding her family.” Aqua shifted in her seat. “I’m scared.” 

Terra clutched the controls of the gummi ship. “I’m scared too. But at least we know she’s in good hands. I mean, we’re learning as we go, but I think we’re getting a good handle on it. And Kairi has been a huge help.” 

Aqua was silent, clutching the basket. Stella was asleep again. 

“We’ll find her parents.” Terra spoke softly. 

“I think we should talk to Yen Sid.” 

Terra’s heart skipped. “You think?” 

“I don’t know what else to do. I just want her to be safe and happy. I need her to be safe...” Aqua trailed the thought. 

Terra swallowed hard and sighed. “We’ll visit Mysterious Tower tomorrow morning. We’ll need to tell Ven tonight.” 

Aqua nodded. “Thanks.” 

The rest of the flight was silent. Terra desperately wanted to speak, to say anything, but nothing got past his lips. He just focused ahead, trying not to think. 

The ship landed at the Land of Departure, the duo exiting to enter the castle. Terra hesitated at the door. “Did you wanna tell him, or did you need me to?” 

Aqua wrung her hands on the basket handle. “Can you?” 

“Of course.” Terra forced a smile as he opened the door for her. 

Ventus hopped to his feet as the door opened. “How’d it go?” 

“No dice.” Terra shook his head. He gave a final glance to Aqua, who nodded. “We’re going plan B.” 

Ven raised a brow. “Plan B? What’s Plan B?” 

“We’re gonna talk to Yen Sid in the morning. Come clean and explain everything. He sees everything that happens in the multiverse, he’s gotta know where Stella came from.” 

“So like… this is probably Stella’s last night here?” 

Terra nodded. Ventus fidgeted with his hands. “Would you mind if I talked alone with her for just a moment then?” 

Terra looked to Aqua. Ventus had fully dove into being an Uncle, loving every minute he could help care for Stella- even if he wasn’t the greatest at it. 

Aqua shrugged. “Of course, Ven.” She placed the basket with Stella on the couch beside him. “I’m going to go take a shower. Would you mind taking Stella back to the room with you, Terra?” 

“Can do,” Terra assured, and Aqua hesitantly walked away. Terra ruffled Ven’s hair. “I’ll be in the kitchen, come get me when you’re ready, kid.” 

“Terra…” Ventus pushed away his hand as he smiled. “Thanks.” 

Terra could only think about how much he wanted literally anything alcoholic, but he settled for a glass of water. He looked into the cup at his reflection. There were bags under his eyes. He breathed deep, and chugged the glass. He rinsed it off and placed it to dry. In the silence, he couldn’t help but overhear Ven’s mumbling. Curious, Terra quietly snuck up to the arch leading to the living room. 

“-so excited to watch you grow up.” Ventus sat next to the basket, his hand in the blankets. “Life is so messed up, and I was gonna be there to protect you every second. But I can already tell that there’s a light in you that will never go out. And as long as you hold tight to that, you’ll find your way.” There was a pause. “Hold onto the light, not my finger…” Ventus chuckled. “Though I’m fine with both.” 

In the silence, Terra felt his heart overflow. He swiftly went inside the kitchen again. Why did he feel like he was about to cry? 

Terra sat and practiced a quick moment of mindfulness, focusing on his breath and closing his eyes. It helped him feel more grounded. 

“Hey? Terra?” Ventus knocked lightly on the archway. 

He jumped, looking over. “You okay?” 

“Yeah. Go get some rest.” 

Terra stood back up and rested a hand on his shoulder. “You too, Ven.” His hand slid off as he walked in and picked up the basket, heading up to Aqua’s room. 

The room was empty, Aqua still in the bath. Terra placed the basket on the desk as always, the spot permanently bare for Stella. He stripped off his clothes, folding them and placing them next to the basket. He yawned hard and stretched out his arms, his shoulders popping when he rolled his head. 

Stella stirred. Terra investigated the noise, peeling back the blankets to better see her. She woke up while Ven was talking to her, and was now fighting sleep again. Terra scooped her up, holding her tight to his chest as he sat on the bed. He slowly bounced as he hummed deep in his throat. 

One thing they learned quickly throughout the week was that Stella loved music. It calmed her without fail. Ventus had been teaching her his favorite songs, dancing around to make her giggle. Vanitas hated Ventus’s music, but one of his floods joined Ventus in dancing before. Though the flood didn’t as much dance as twitch about and make happy chirping noises. It made Stella laugh nevertheless, and her uncles lived for that chiming sound. 

Terra’s deep voice was a melody to Stella. Combined with Aqua’s lilting song, the little baby was fast to fall asleep. But in pinches like this, one voice was enough. 

Terra was too focused on Stella’s heavy eyes to notice that she had grabbed onto his hair. He tried to keep his hair back, but recently he had less patience for it, the strands becoming more wild than usual. Some hints of stubble even showed along his jawline. 

Once he was sure Stella was asleep, he untangled his hair from her tiny grip. He stood up to place her in the basket, but something in his body froze there. He couldn’t take his eyes off of her. There was a dull feeling in his chest he couldn’t describe. He pushed away what little hair Stella had, running a thumb lightly across her forehead and cheek. 

“May your heart be your guiding key,” He whispered. 

He placed the sleeping baby back into her basket, wrapping her tight in her blankets. He ran a hand down his face, taking a deep breath. He just needed some rest. 

The door swung open, Aqua entering in her oversized shirt. “Oh! Is she asleep?” 

Terra nodded. “Just got her down.” 

“Great,” She smiled, but it quickly turned sour. “Let’s get some sleep.” 

“Agreed.” 

Aqua shut off the lights as they climbed into bed. It was silent. 

After a moment, Aqua quietly took Terra’s hand. He let out a small confused grunt as she raised his arm. She curled into his side, letting go of his hand to let it wrap around her. She rested her hand instead on his bare chest. Terra placed a hand over hers. 

Aqua blushed, but Terra’s whole body raised five degrees warmer. He squeezed her hand, reminding himself to stay cool and calm. They always woke up tangled up in each other, it didn’t mean anything more to start that way. Right? 

After many minutes, the duo fell asleep. 

“Terra?” 

He quickly sat up straight, scanning the room. Aqua was gone. Stella was gone. 

“Terra!” 

That was Ven’s voice. Terra jumped out of bed, fully clothed, and sprinted down the hallways. They were twisted around and shorter, the lights throughout them flickering. He followed the voices- two were clearly Ventus and Aqua, but there was another he didn’t recognize. 

That room. That dreaded room, where this all started. Where he was denied being a master. They were there. 

He tore down the walls, the castle crumbling underneath his feet. Aqua, Ventus, and a young girl, maybe five or six years old, all huddled together. Dark forces circled the room, chunks of the castle crashing around them. Terra swatted away the concrete, running up to and embracing the trio. 

“Terra, we need to get out!” Aqua was crying. “How do we get out?” 

“Run, get to my old room and escape out the windows. It’s a jump, but you’ll make it. Aim for the shrubs.” 

“But what about you?” Ventus held Terra’s arm. 

“I’ll say here, buy you time. Where’s Vanitas?” 

“He’s just ahead, but Terra!”- Aqua gasped. 

“No debating, you need to run!” 

“Dad.” The young girl looked up at him. Time froze as her green eyes locked on his, her curly red hair blending to the fire around them. 

“Stella, you need to follow them.” Terra got on a knee and held her shoulder. “Dad’ll be fine. I’ll be fine. I love you.” He kissed her forehead. He raised up to Aqua, quickly kissing her lips. “Run! Now!” 

The trio followed the word, sprinting away until they became a tiny spark of light. Terra turned and saw the dark forces manifest, his heart sinking into his stomach. 

He lurched up in bed, covered in sweat and gasping for breath. Aqua sat up with him, immediately awake with him. “Terra? What happened? Are you okay?” Her soft voice washed over him. 

“Nightmare.” Terra breathed, calming down. “Bad one. Unlike anything I’ve had before.” 

“Did you want to talk about it?” 

“Maybe later.” Terra shook his head. “I need to understand it first.” 

“Okay…” Aqua rested a hand lightly on his leg. “I’m here if you need anything.” 

“Thank you,” Terra held her hand. “Aqua, I,” he looked into her eyes. They were even stunning and full of light in the pitch black night. “I’m glad you’re here.” 

Aqua smiled, although a bit confused. “Me too.” 

Terra shook off the thoughts, relaxing back into bed. “Sorry for waking you.” 

“It’s no worry.” Aqua cuddled beside him. “Promise.” 

They laid quiet a moment, both unable to fall back asleep. Terra nervously traced Aqua’s shirt with his fingers, analyzing the dream. It just didn’t make any sense. 

“Are you still awake, Aqua?” Terra hesitantly whispered. 

“Yes.” Aqua looked up at him. “You alright?” 

“Yeah, yeah. I just, I have something I wanna run by you.” 

“Okay?” She shifted a bit. “What is it?” 

“I…” Terra hesitated, unsure how to say what was on his mind. “Are you sure taking Stella to Yen Sid is the best idea?”

“Terra…” Aqua’s tone turned somber as she propped herself up. Terra sat up as well. “We don’t have another choice anymore.” 

“I think we do, though.” 

“What is it?” 

Terra swallowed hard. “We could keep her.” 

“We have been keeping her?” Aqua wrung her hands. “It’s not working.” 

“I mean, she stays here. With us. We help her grow up.” 

“Are you”- Aqua started. 

“Hear me out.” Terra stopped her. “I know we still aren’t the best at this whole thing. But we’re getting damn good at it! And Ven loves her so much. You should have seen him tonight, he’s so broken up about it. She’s in good hands with us.” 

“Ven is a child!” Aqua interrupted before Terra could say more. “You’re being irrational. We can’t raise a child!” 

“But why not?” Terra persisted. 

“Because we can’t! We don’t know the first thing about it. Kairi knows more than we do.” 

“So we utilize her help like we have been.” 

“That’s not the point.” Aqua took a breath. “It would just be irresponsible to believe we could raise a child without any knowledge.” 

“Eraqus did it.” 

“Don’t,” Aqua snapped. “Don’t bring him into this.” 

“Eraqus saved us from families that didn’t want us. He raised us as his own children. And his only resource was Xehanort! Can’t imagine that’s a man who knows how to change a fucking diaper.” 

“Eraqus was different.” 

“How so? Because he nearly killed Ventus?” 

“You killed Eraqus!” Tears streamed down her cheeks. She clapped a hand over her mouth, her voice quieter. “Terra, I didn’t mean-”

“You’re afraid I’ll kill her.” Terra looked away. “You think I’m not? Xehanort used me to kill Eraqus. I almost killed you and Ventus. I don’t know who I killed while I was possessed. I’m a murderer, Aqua.” 

“You’re not a…” Aqua swallowed. “Stella can’t live in this environment. She can’t grow up reliving our trauma.” 

“Because we’ll obviously repeat our history.” 

“That’s not what I meant.” 

“What do you mean then?” Terra’s anger bubbled in his stomach. “Tell me!” 

Aqua opened her mouth to answer, but nothing came out. She curled into herself. “I think you should leave.” 

Terra felt his heart shatter in his chest. “Alright,” he whispered. He got up and grabbed his clothes, taking one last glance at Stella. “Go to Yen Sid’s without me.” 

Terra left the room, closing the door and immediately falling to his knees. 

Aqua curled into a ball and cried hard. 

Stella woke up at the noise, crying for attention. Aqua desperately wanted to stand up, to hold her, to coo her back to sleep. Yet she was frozen there, solidified into her mattress. All they could do was cry themselves to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :,)


	7. Brothers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The brothers bond over Terra and Aqua's temporary rift.

Aqua woke up, her eyes sore. The bed felt unnaturally empty, the bedsheets roughed up more than usual. She took a deep breath, pushing herself up and out of bed. 

She felt like someone put her through a wash cycle and hung her up to dry. Everything was sore, her face and arms were damp. She took her shirt and rubbed at her face, wiping away the dried tears. She stretched her body and felt every joint pop. 

As she dressed, she realized Stella was already awake, absentmindedly looking around the room. Pulling the last belt taut, she grabbed the basket and walked to the bathroom. After a quick brush through her hair and teeth, she was ready. 

Ventus was groggily eating a bagel in the kitchen. Chirithy slept at his feet. “Aqua!” His voice was most alive thing about him. 

“Good morning, Ven.” She smiled. 

“Where’s Terra?” 

“You haven’t seen him?” Aqua’s chest felt heavy. 

“Not yet. Isn’t he with you?” 

“Well…” Aqua bit her cheek. “We had a… disagreement, last night. I don’t think he wants anything to do with me right now. And honestly, I’m not sure I want to see him at the moment either.” 

“What happened?” Ventus’s eyes widened. “You guys never fight. Is everything alright?” 

“It’ll be alright, I promise.” Aqua assured herself more than Ven. “I’m going to feed Stella and head to the Mysterious Tower.” 

Ventus almost choked on his bagel. “Already? Wait, hold on!” Before Aqua could ask, the boy sprinted full speed upstairs. 

Aqua shook her head. At least Ven was always so full of light. She placed the basket with Stella on the table, grabbing a warm formula bottle. She sat down and scooped Stella out, tipping the bottle so she could drink. 

Halfway through, Aqua heard Ventus’s clumsy footsteps running back down. He was out of breath, something clutched in his hand. “Sorry, I had to put the finishing touches on it!” 

“What is it?” Aqua asked. 

Ven stood up proud, presenting a small necklace. Hanging on it was a tiny wayfinder star. Each point was a different color- blue, orange, green, red, and purple. In the center engraved were the letters LoD. 

“I stayed up all night making it! I want Stella to have it. I mean, this’ll probably be the last time I’ll see her. So I want her to have a wayfinder like all of us! I even color-coded it,” he pointed to each tip, “you, Terra, me, Vanitas, and the purple is her! I just thought the purple suited her. And I put LoD so she’ll know when she’s older to come back to the Land of Departure and see us!” 

Ventus held the necklace to his chest. “I want to be sure I can protect her, even when I’m not there. So if anything ever happens to her, as long as she has this, she’ll find her way back to us.” 

Aqua couldn’t speak. Tears welled in her eyes, her throat burning. She nodded, taking the bottle away from Stella. She had stopped drinking anyway. Ventus carefully placed the necklace around Stella, who was falling into a milk-induced sleep. 

Aqua placed Stella on her shoulder, patting her back to burp her. “Thank you, Ventus.” 

Ven beamed. He held onto Stella’s hand a second. “We’re all connected, always.” He nodded to himself before sitting back down to finish his bagel. 

After a moment, Aqua placed Stella back in her basket. “I’ll be back soon.” 

“Aren’t you going to eat?” Ventus asked. 

“I’m not hungry.” Aqua shook her head. “Keep an eye on Terra and Vanitas for me.” 

Ventus hesitated, but nodded. “I’ll hold down the fort. Go find Stella’s family.” 

“Thank you.” She hugged him and left the castle. 

After a moment, Ventus felt his gummiphone vibrate in his pocket. Pulling it out, he was greeted to a wall of texts. 

Evil Twin> Ventus 

Evil Twin> Ven

Evil Twin> Ventu

Evil Twin> Ventus

Evil Twin> Fuck 

Evil Twin> VenTUS 

Me> stop 

Me> stop texting my name 

Me> what’s happening 

Evil Twin> Fuck 

Evil Twin> just 

Evil Twin> get to my room 

Evil Twin> URGENT 

Me> ok ok I’ll be right there 

Evil Twin> NOW 

Ventus pocketed his phone and grabbed what was left of his bagel, taking big bites to finish it as he ran down the halls. As he got to Vanitas’s room, he heard a loud crash inside. He swung open the door. 

Vanitas has crawled onto the top of his bunk bed, hissing furiously with his mask on. On the floor was a giant unversed he hadn’t seen before- it was white and blue, a gelatinous blob with closed red eyes and a gaping mouth. Small black forms dripped from the eyes, and made small floods as they touched the ground. 

“CLOSE THE DOOR!” Vanitas cursed. 

Ventus slammed the door shut. 

“WITH YOU INSIDE, DUMBASS!” 

“Why would I want to be in there right now?” Ventus yelled through the door. 

“JUST GET IN HERE!” 

Ventus hesitantly equipped his keyblade armor and quickly opened and closed the door to get inside. He climbed up the bunk and crouched next to Vanitas. 

“What is that?” 

“I don’t know! I woke up and it was here! I haven’t seen one like this before. Kill it!” 

“Killing it hurts you!” 

“I don’t give a shit! Kill it!” Vanitas pointed at the crying blob. 

“Wait!” Ventus held back his arm. “If you understand the emotion, you can send it away somewhere safe. Did you have a nightmare or something?” 

“Even if I did, I wouldn’t explain it to you.” Vanitas put emphasis on the last word. There was a pause. “But I didn’t have one.” 

“Right…” Ventus glanced from the unversed to Vanitas. “Were you sad last night? Frustrated, worried?” 

“No!” Vanitas pushed him, but couldn’t muster it to be hard. “...m...maybe.” 

“You gotta talk to me.” Ventus put a hand on his shoulder, which Vanitas immediately shrugged off. “You’re my brother, we figure things out together.” 

“I don’t need to tell you anything.” Vanitas snapped, but his stance was softer. “But… this is probably because I overheard Aqua and the other guy fighting last night. I’m sure you heard it too.” 

“Actually I didn’t…” Ventus scratched his neck.

“Are you fucking deaf?” 

“I was asleep!” 

“Well, sorry I’m an insomniac!” The unversed spawned two more floods. “God, I don’t have the time to be annoyed with you right now.” 

“Fine by me.” Ventus shook his head. “What did you hear? What made you so upset?” 

Vanitas was silent. 

“Vani, you gotta tell me.” 

His shoulders drooped, clearly defeated. “They were fighting about Stella. Terra wants to keep her. But Aqua thinks it’s irresponsible. They were yelling about the past and the shit they went through and how Stella can’t be around a murderer like Terra. And I thought, if Terra thinks that he’s a murderer, what does he think of me? I’m a danger to everyone. Aqua is right, we can’t be trusted with anything. Everything is fucked and this weird baby is making everything worse!” Vanitas curled into himself. 

“Vanitas…” Ventus was quiet, trying to understand. “I’m scared too.” 

“I’m not scared!” Vanitas lashed out, and Ventus grabbed onto his fist. He placed it back down. 

“Yes, you are. You need to accept that.” Ventus watched Vanitas curl into himself. “The last time everyone fought, we were all separated. Terra got possessed, Aqua fell to darkness, we- well, you know what happened to us. Fighting like this is just as scary as fighting for your life.” 

The floods, easily over ten by now, began crawling up the bed posts. Ventus summoned his keyblade, holding it defensively. 

“Nothing is alright. Nothing will ever be alright,” Vanitas mumbled. 

“That’s not true!” Ven tightened his grip. “Even when everything is wrong, even when the world is falling down on you, it will always have a happy ending. Even while we were torn so far apart, we all managed to follow our hearts to come back here! To be a family. And families always stick together- no one gets left behind.” A flood investigated his keyblade. “Even when we fight, we’ll always come back. You just have to believe that.” 

There was a pause. “Put your blade away, Ven.” 

Ventus hesitated, but obeyed, sitting back. The flood sniffed at his armor, but ignored him entirely. Instead, it slid over to Vanitas, curling up onto his body. A few more floods followed, pushing under his arms and making chirping noises. Vanitas held one tight, petting its head. 

“They don’t attack you?” 

“Why would they? They’re a part of me.” Vanitas brushed back one’s long ears. “They… they actually help me sometimes.” 

“They’re like your Chirithy!” 

“They aren’t like your dumb stupid cat.” 

“They kinda are,” Ventus whispered to himself, but didn’t argue. “Do you think you can send the big guy away now?” 

Vanitas took a deep breath. Without answering, he jumped down off the bunk, carefully letting the floods crawl off him. The giant unversed turned toward him and howled. Vanitas held up a hand. “You are my sadness. My fear. My confusion. You have done your job well. It is time to rest.” 

The unversed convulsed as he spoke, and leaned forward to touch his palm. In a matter of seconds, the unversed faded out of reality, dark sparks dancing around in the air instead. The floods that had spawned faded one by one, the room filling with black dust. 

Ventus climbed down and walked up to him, taking off his armor. “I’m proud of you.” 

“I need to think.” Vanitas took off his helmet, streaks under his eyes. “I’ll… text you when I wake up.” 

“So at 11:30 tonight?” Ven grinned. 

Vanitas tried to hide his smile. “Smartass.” 

Ventus patted his back and walked out of the room.


	8. Outside Help

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Terra decides to call in some help as Aqua learns about Stella's origin.

Everything just felt sore. Terra had to have been awake for over an hour, but he refused to move a muscle. Why did he have that overwhelming urge to ask Aqua such a stupid question? And now she’s gone. She hates him now, and will forever. He’d do anything to go back in time and punch himself in the face for speaking. 

It was that nightmare. That stupid nightmare- it had just felt so real. He wanted to forget it, trying to lock it into a corner of his thoughts, but nothing worked. When he closed his eyes, he saw Stella’s clear green eyes looking back. It was almost haunting. 

He had to make things right. Stella or not, this was his family. He had to figure out how to apologize to Aqua. Maybe he should ask Ventus for advice? 

“Ven is a child!” Aqua’s voice echoed in his mind. 

Okay, not Ven. It may be best he didn’t know they fought anyway, it’d break his heart. Vanitias was right out, there’d be too much explaining to do. Terra wracked his brain to think of someone who could help. 

Isa. 

He was his age, and more level-headed than Lea. Terra scrambled in his sheets to find his gummiphone, pulling it out triumphantly. He quickly (well, quickly as he could) pulled up a chat log and began typing. 

Me> Isa, its terra 

Me> r u free today 

To Terra’s surprise, Isa only needed a few minutes to respond. 

Moon Man> Yes, actually. The kids are hanging out at the beach. Lea and I are at Twilight Town. 

Moon Man> Is everything alright? 

Me> Do u mind if i stop by 

Moon Man> YES IM TRYING TO HAVE A CUTE MOMENT HERE 

Moon Man> That was Lea 

Moon Man> Come on over, he’ll get over himself 

Moon Man> We’ll wait at Little Chef’s Bistro. 

Me> Thanks b right over 

Terra hopped out of bed, full of reinvigorated energy. He hastily pulled on his clothes and pocketed his phone. Without disregard to his normal morning routine, he sprinted out. 

“Where ya goin’, Terra?” 

Terra froze, realizing Ventus was on the couch playing a game. “Twilight Town?” 

“Why?” Ventus asked. “Did you get assigned something?” 

“Oh, uh”- Terra looked for an excuse. “Y-yeah actually! Just got the call from good ol’ Yen Sid. I-I’ll be back soon.” 

Ventus raised a brow, clearly unconvinced. “Alright. Be careful, Terra.” 

“Thanks, kid.” Terra smiled. “Gotta go!” 

Before Ventus could respond, Terra sprinted out the door, pulling out his keyblade rider and equipping his armor. Within seconds, he was cruising through open paths in space. That was one thing that always calmed Terra down- being surrounded by sparkling stars and nothing else. In the distance he could see various worlds, the silhouettes of castles and fields protruding the dark expanse. He could breathe without worry, completely zen, resting his body on his rider. 

Twilight Town was fairly close, and he knew exactly where to drop down. The nice thing about this world is that they’re used to keyblade wielders and various mysteries, so no one questioned him riding down from the sky in armor. He stopped on a sidewalk, his rider disappearing and his armor retracting. 

“Terra!” Lea’s voice cut through the air. He waved him over, the two men sitting and enjoying brunch outside. They had already finished their food and pulled up an extra chair for him, which he jogged over and took. 

“It’s a pleasure to see you.” Isa nodded with a smile. 

“What’s going on dude?” Lea reclined in his chair. 

“I appreciate you taking time for me,” Terra sheepishly started. 

“You look like a wreck.” Lea blunted noted. “Baby been keeping you up?” 

“Lea!” 

“What? I’m showing concern.” 

Terra forced a laugh, shaking his head. “It’s alright, it’s partially true. Stella sleeps most of the time, but I can’t deny having to wake up a lot for her still.” He leaned onto the table. “But no, no. This is… it’s about Aqua. I really fucked up.” 

The two men glanced at each other, but stayed silent. Terra continued. “I told her I wanted us to keep Stella.” 

Lea mimed spitting out his drink. “What?” He squeaked. 

“Let the man finish!” Isa shoved Lea. 

“That was about her reaction, too…” Terra scratched his neck. “I just, I had this dream that I was protecting all of them- Aqua, Ven, and Stella. And Stella was older, and… she called me Dad.” 

“Intense.” Lea murmured. 

“I have this weird and strong feeling that we’re supposed to keep her.” 

“Ultimately, it was just a dream…” Isa leaned back and placed a hand on his chin. “Not to be rude, but perhaps you acted hastily? There’s no need to rush these things.” 

“Aqua took her to Yen Sid this morning.” 

Lea mimed spitting out his drink again. Isa slapped alongside his head. 

“Perhaps there WAS a reason to rush,” Isa corrected. “But it’s not like keeping a toy. This is a living child.” 

“I think I know that, Isa.” Terra mumbled. “Just, my problem is, Aqua hates me now, and I need to find a way to apologize for this shitshow I made.” 

Lea slapped the table, the utensils clattering on his plate. “A grand gesture!” 

“Don’t. Don’t do that.” Isa hid his face in his hands. 

“Give her a bundle of her favorite flowers- you know her favorite flower right?” 

“Hydrangeas.” 

“Hydrangeas! Get her a bouquet of hydrangeas and explain that you overreacted and that she was right- the woman is always right- and that you’re sorry.” 

“I’m not doing that.” Terra spoke matter-of-factly. 

“And why not?” Lea placed his hands on his hips. 

“Because it’s not Terra. It’s you.” Isa spoke. “Terra is a man of few words.” 

“Thanks?” Terra spoke. “I can’t do that for Aqua. It’s too romantic, I don’t want it to be construed that way. I- this might be news, but I really like Aqua, and I don’t want to fuck up a confession, too.” 

Lea blinked. “I’m very surprised. This is my surprised face. I’m so shocked at this new information that literally no one knew.” 

“Is this saying you would do this gesture to Ventus?” Isa played along. “It wouldn’t be romantic toward him.” 

“Neither of you are helping,” Terra grumbled, his face red. 

“You know you’re gonna have to tell her sometime, right?” Lea leaned on the table. “I mean, of course not now, if you really think she hates you. Which I assure you, she does not. She was just shocked and acted defensively.” 

Terra was silent a moment. “I don’t want to ruin this one good thing I have in my life.” 

Lea looked at Isa, who simply nodded. “Alright, you want some advice? Take it from me. I fucked up so hard with Isa. Like. So hard. Isa sent me on multiple missions specifically to kill my ass. We were at each other’s throats for years. And he still loves me! He loves my dumb ass who commits arson and teaches children to eat ice cream every day.” 

“I literally had to force feed Roxas celery the other day.” Isa shook his head. 

“Okay but that was hilarious.” 

“Maybe from your standpoint.” Isa chuckled. 

“My point being,” Lea waved off the thought. “I literally have no right to date this man. We have fought to the end of the world and back. But we still love each other. And you still love Aqua. And I would bet my life savings that Aqua loves you too. As long as you apologize and let it blow over, you’ll be able to confess your undying love and get your head crushed between her thighs.” 

“Lea!” Terra flushed bright red. 

He shrugged. “Everyone at this table has thought about it at least once. And judging by loverboy’s face here, I’d say it’s been on his mind quite a lot.” 

“Ignoring that last statement,” Isa spoke through gritted teeth, “I agree. You just have to be open and honest.” 

Terra took a breath to steady his heartbeat. “Alright. Thank you, guys.” 

“Our pleasure.” Isa nodded. 

“Go get your girl.” Lea clapped. 

Terra shook his head. He stood up and equipped his armor. “See you both later.” 

Isa waved and Lea gave a two finger salute. Terra stepped away from the bistro to summon his rider, and blasted back into the sky. 

Lea’s voice echoed in his head. “Aqua loves you too.” 

—

Aqua took a deep breath. No going back now. She knocked on the door. 

“Come in,” Yen Sid’s voice was clear. 

Aqua took one last glance at Stella, still asleep from her breakfast. She relaxed her shoulders and opened the door. 

Yen Sid sat at his desk as always, sitting prim and proper. King Mickey sat on one of the chairs to the side, examining his keyblade. 

“Master Aqua.” Yen Sid nodded. 

“Master Yen Sid.” Aqua bowed. “King Mickey.” She bowed to him as well. 

“Aw shucks, no need to be formal, Aqua!” Mickey placed his keyblade on a nearby table, walking up to her. “What brings you here?” 

“I require your assistance.” Aqua puffed her chest, but easily deflated. “Do you recall the mission you sent Terra and I to last week? To Traverse Town?” 

“I recall.” Yen Sid nodded. “It went smoothly.” 

“To be honest, the end wasn’t as smooth as me and Terra led on.” Aqua placed the basket on the desk. “We found this surrounded by a giant pile of heartless.” 

Yen Sid pulled back the blanket with a small magical flourish. His eyes widened, then closed, deep in thought. Mickey climbed onto the desk to see, and covered his mouth to muffle a gasp. 

“Terra and I… we searched everywhere for her family. But not one house in Traverse was missing a baby girl. So we took her back to the Land of Departure to take care of her until we found her family. And after a week, our searches still have proven fruitless. We request your guidance.” 

Yen Sid opened his eyes, clasping his hands. “This indeed is a… dire situation. For no one to claim her in a week, and for two skilled weilders to waste valuable time with her…” 

“It wasn’t a waste…” Aqua murmured. 

“Please stay here. I will consult the stars to search the worlds for her family.” 

“Thank you, Yen Sid.” Aqua bowed. She took a seat across from where Mickey was earlier. Mickey took his seat again, solemnly picking back up his keyblade. 

“Aqua…” Mickey spoke softly. “If I can be of any help…” 

“Thank you, Mickey.” Aqua forced a smile. “But I’m sure Yen Sid has it covered.” 

Mickey nodded, focusing on his blade. He pulled out synthesis materials- he must be upgrading it. 

Aqua wondered how long this would take. Her stomach was already doing flips, her heart racing- she didn’t know how long she could wait. She pulled out her gummiphone, scrolling through Kingstagram. 

It always calmed her to see her friends being so happy. Sora, Kairi, and Riku were building sand castles. Naminé had started a new art project, illustrating Kairi’s writings. Xion and Roxas were wrestling and the Twilight trio were taking bets. Xion won. 

Lea posted a picture of a stack of pancakes, an unknowing Isa in the background. “Brunch w/ Bae <3” 

Her thumbs tapped the sides of her phone in thought. She pulled up Lea’s chat log. 

Me> I hate to bother, but could I ask something? 

Fire Starter> ofc what up 

Me> Have you ever fought with Isa? 

Fire Starter> whoa whoa whoa back up 

Fire Starter> first of all, all the fucking time. Have you met me 

Fire Starter> wheres this coming from??? 

Aqua hesitated before typing her answer. 

Me> Terra and I fought. I don’t want to go into detail. 

Fire Starter> hi Aqua :) -Isa 

Fire Starter> he really doesn’t know how to steal a phone 

Fire Starter> love this man 

Fire Starter> but yeah no your thing 

Fire Starter> best thing is to just communicate. Apologize, talk it out, have a level head 

Fire Starter> he doesn’t want to be angry any more than you do 

Aqua> what if you can’t talk it out? 

Fire Starter> you can ALWAYS talk it out 

Fire Starter> Isa tried to kill me how many times. And I love him still. Terra loves you too 

Aqua flushed bright red, unsure how to respond. 

Me> You know me and Terra aren’t together. The argument wasn’t about that. 

Fire Starter> No, I know 

Fire Starter> But hear me out 

Fire Starter> If Terra wanted to break my spine like a glow stick, I would let him 

Fire Starter> And I KNOW you feel the same 

Aqua> THANKS LEA BYE 

She placed her phone back in her pocket. It burned against her leg. 

The wait became even longer. She picked at her nails, memorized the details of the walls. Mickey asked to leave at one point, needing to meet with Minnie. Her leg bounced and she crossed her arms, trying to stay calm and awake. 

She wasn’t sure how long it took, but Yen Sid finally called Aqua to his desk. She almost tripped when she stood, standing at attention. 

“I’m afraid I don’t have pleasant news,” He spoke evenly. “I have searched the galaxy, every family of every world. This child… belongs to none of them.” 

“That… that doesn’t make sense. Where did she come from then?” 

“I am unsure,” Yen Sid shook his head. “And in the way you found her, it worries me greatly.” 

Aqua gulped, her throat suddenly dry. “What do we do, then?” 

“Master Aqua, I believe that choice is up to you and Terra. Whatever you do will not disrupt the order. Though I must warn you, I want someone to keep an eye on this child at all times. She is not normal, and needs to be monitored.” 

Aqua nodded. “I will speak to Terra about the matter.” 

“That sounds like the best course of action.” 

Aqua took the basket and bowed. “Thank you, Master Yen Sid.” 

He silently nodded, and she left the room. By the time she reached the bottom of the stairs, her emotions came over her like a wave, tears streaming down her face.


	9. Hydrangeas

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Terra apologizes to Aqua. They decide what to finally do with Stella.

Aqua walked back into her home. No one was there to greet her. She placed the basket on the table, unsure what to do. She began to warm a bottle, sure that Stella would be hungry soon. 

The door swung open, surprising her. Terra walked in, trying to be sneaky but completely unaware of his surroundings. He carefully closed the door again, turning around, and locking eyes with Aqua. They both paled. 

“Terra.” Aqua barely whispered. 

Terra walked up to her, holding out something at arms’ length, not even looking at her. “I’m sorry.” In his hand was a bundle of light blue hydrangeas. “Please… forgive me.” 

Aqua blinked back tears. She carefully took the flowers, placing them on the table. Terra’s eyes looked worried at her silence, his stance defeated. Aqua suddenly turned and wrapped her arms around him tight. Terra was frozen, but slowly held her close, his chin resting on her shoulder. Quiet tears rolled down their cheeks, but both of them were smiling. 

“I’m sorry, Terra.” Aqua pulled away, drying her face. “You were right. And I was scared.” 

“What are you talking about?” Terra kept smiling, but was clearly confused. 

“I went to Yen Sid’s. And… He couldn’t find Stella’s family.” 

“What?” Terra nearly screamed, immediately regretting the loud outburst. He softened his voice. “What do you mean he couldn’t find them? He’s the one with the whole ‘I see All’ shtick.” 

“He saw All,” Aqua shook her head. “And nothing appeared. No world we know of had lost her. What we do with her is up to us- but he wants us to keep an eye on her because of the mysterious circumstances.” 

“What are we gonna do then?” Terra leaned against the table. 

“We’re going to raise her.” 

“Really?” Terra’s eyes widened. 

“Like I said, you were right,” Aqua had a small smile. “It’s the most reasonable course of action. Who else will take care of her within our eyesight?” 

Terra smiled wide, his eyes sparking, but quickly hid his excitement. “How do you feel about that?” 

“To be honest, I wanted to keep her too.” Aqua wrung her hands. “I just… to just be thrust into this situation, where I don’t know what to do, where I’m not in control- it scared me. And I took it out on you.” 

“Aqua,” Terra lightly wrapped his hands around hers. “I never know what I’m doing. Ever.” Aqua chuckled, and Terra grinned. “But I do know two things: One, Stella is gonna be in good hands. We have an entire army backing us to help raise her! We’re not alone in this. And two, we’re partners in this. I will be by your side every time you fall, I will always help you any way I can. You are my shining light that lets me know that the future will be okay.” 

Aqua flushed red, trying to hide her face. “How come I get the feeling that the second thing isn’t solely about Stella?” 

“Wha”- Terra felt his body temperature rise. 

Stella grumbled from the basket, her tiny arms grasping the air. Aqua took the warmed bottle, sliding past Terra. “She must be hungry. Would you mind calling Ventus and Vanitas down so we can explain the news?” Aqua asked. Terra was frozen a moment before wordlessly jogging upstairs. She could hear him yelling their names through the halls. 

Aqua pulled Stella out, leaning back into the couch and tipping the bottle into the baby’s mouth. It took a minute until she ate greedily, her arms laying on the bottle. 

“Do I have to?” She heard Vanitas scream. 

“Yes!” Terra yelled back. 

A loud and overdramatic grumble rung through the halls. Aqua simply shook her head. 

Surely enough, the trio of boys returned to the living room. Chirithy was riding on Ven’s head, and Vanitas was covered in a red blanket. 

“Wait.” Ventus’s face clearly showed his mental calculations. “Why is Stella here?” 

Terra lounged beside Aqua as she explained the whole situation. The brothers listened carefully, Ventus being much clearer about his excitement. 

“So Stella stays with us? I’m gonna be her uncle? For real this time?” Ventus hopped in place. 

“Correct, Uncle Ventus.” Terra teased. 

“Call me Uncle Vanitas and I’ll drop kick you.” Vanitas scowled. 

“You don’t have to keep pretending you don’t like her.” Ventus stuck out his tongue. He leaned over Aqua’s shoulder to watch Stella drink. “I’ll bet anything that one of his unversed find its way into her basket again.” 

Vanitas hissed. Chirithy hopped down Ventus’s shoulders and arms, sitting next to the basket. “I personally think I’d be a wonderful cuddle buddy for baby Stella!” It spoke. 

“We’ll see.” Aqua giggled. “Maybe if she can’t fall asleep one night.” 

“My services are always here.” Chirithy jumped happily. 

“That’s sickening,” Vanitas mumbled. 

“You’re sickening.” Ventus nudged him. 

“That’s the nicest thing you’ve ever told me.” 

“Boys,” Terra spoke firmly. “Be kind.” 

“Fine.” Vanitas rolled his eyes. “I’m going back to sleep.” He shuffled out of the room. A small flood poked out of his blanket and looked at Stella a moment, a happy chirp coming from it as Vanitas drug it away. 

“Wait, she still has her necklace, right?” Ventus paused. 

Aqua fished in Stella’s clothes, careful not to tip the bottle too much, and pulled out the small wayfinder. “Did you wanna hold onto it?” 

“Nah, that’s okay.” Ventus beamed. “I just wanted to make sure it was okay. But I gotta go back upstairs, I was in the middle of a call with Roxas.” Ventus started out the room. “Is it alright if I tell him the news?” 

“Please do!” Aqua answered. 

“Everyone’s gonna have to know anyways.” Terra added. 

“Sweet! I’ll be back down later!” Ventus sprinted up the stairs. Chirithy spun and made their tiny noises, turning into a ball of light and following Ventus. 

Aqua and Terra sat in silence together. Stella finished eating, and after Aqua burped her, she switched hands to Terra. He held her close to his chest. Her curious eyes took in every single thing around her. Tiny hands grasped at her blanket and at Terra’s hands. Something bubbled in Terra’s chest, something peaceful and ecstatic at the same time. He opened his mouth to say something to Aqua, but before a word left his lips, her gummiphone buzzed. Puzzled, she pulled it out to see the notification. 

Ventus 2.0> YOURE ADOPTING STELLA HELL YA 

Fire Starter> Congrats~ ;)

Moon Man> Lea and I are here for help. Happy for you 

Pink Princess> congrats!!! I can’t wait to babysit sometime :D 

Local Soft Boi> I WANNA TEACH HER THINGS 

Local Soft Boi> I WANNA SHOW HER HOW TO SWIM 

Pink Princess> @local_soft_boi I think she has a couple years before that haha~ 

ArtsyWitch> I may not know much about babies, but I’m very happy for you :) 

Highwind> congrats 

Puppet Pal> AH :0 SO EXCITING!!! 

Ventus 2.0> don’t sound so excited @highwind :p 

Aqua and Terra scanned the wall of texts. Aqua shook her head, hiding a small grin. “They’re all so ridiculous.” 

“Did you expect different?” Terra raised a brow. 

“Not at all.” She giggled. “I’m happy.” 

Terra felt his heart skip. “Me too.”


	10. Chaos

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aqua leaves on a mission, leaving Terra to take care of the baby.

The following week, the new family fell back into their stride as before. Aqua fell asleep in Terra’s arms, Ventus entertained his new best friend, and the unversed became the best stuffed animals Stella could ask for. Their friends even helped pitch in to buy a bassinet to keep in their room, some toys, and some clothes. 

Everyone came to the castle to help make a nursery, too. Roxas and Lea painted the room light blue and purple as Naminé and Isa painted glow in the dark stars on the ceiling. Riku and Terra did the heavy lifting- carrying in the crib, some small bookcases, and a few books. Kairi, Sora, and Ventus decided where to keep the toys and clothes, playing with the toys more often than they should have. The final touch was a mobile- which hung a blue, green, orange, red, and purple Wayfinders. 

Once again, everything felt right. 

Aqua, Terra, Ventus, and Vanitas were all eating breakfast, Stella blowing bubbles in her basket. Ventus was scrolling through Kingstagram, Vanitas was part way eating and part way dissociating, and Terra and Aqua were having a quiet and pleasant conversation. As Aqua finished her food, her gummiphone rang. 

“Is that you, Ventus?” Aqua grinned at the tired boy. 

“Hmm? Wha- nah, I didn’t send you anything.” Ventus shook his head. 

“Oh,” Aqua, clearly confused, fished out her phone. “Who is calling this early?” 

The words YEN SID were bold across the screen, a green and red button at the bottom. Aqua showed it to Terra before composing herself and answering. When she pressed the green button, Yen Sid appeared on screen, as stoic as always. On a split screen was Kairi, her hair wild from bed head. 

“Master Aqua, Kairi,” he spoke. “I must speak with the both of you.” 

“Master,” Aqua nodded. “What’s going on?” 

“There’s been a disturbance in Olympus. I am requesting you to seek it out and do what you can to find it and quell the energy. Chip and Dale will send you the approximate coordinates.” 

“Just me and Aqua?” Kairi asked. “Do you have any idea what may be causing this disturbance?” 

Yen Sid shook his head. “Unfortunately, no. If nothing else, this will be a reconnaissance. But I am quite sure that the two of you will be able to handle it.” 

Aqua swallowed, nodding. “I’ll pick up Kairi in ten and we’ll be on our way.” 

“Make it fifteen please! I just woke up.” Kairi blushed. 

“Can do.” Aqua smiled. “We will call you for important updates.” 

“Very well.” Yen Sid nodded. “Good luck, and may your heart be your guiding key.” With that, the screen went black. As she pocketed the phone, she saw Terra and Ventus’s puppy dog eyes looking up at her. 

“Can I come?” Ventus asked. 

“You know you can’t, Ven,” Aqua laughed, ruffling his hair. “Yen Sid wants me and Kairi.” 

Ven slouched. “Okay.” He drug out the word. 

“You think I can handle Stella on my own?” Terra leaned across the table. 

Aqua cursed under her breath. “I can’t believe I forgot. But I’m sure you can handle it. You three can handle anything.” She smirked. 

“Three?” Vanitas perked up. “Ah fuck.” 

“I need as much help as I can get, kid.” Terra chuckled, but was clearly concerned. “Uh… just keep your gummiphone on you, okay Aqua?” 

“Of course, I always do. I’ll be texting when I can to check in.” Aqua picked up a small pouch beside the door. They all had to-go bags in case of emergency calls like this. “She sleeps most of the time, I’m sure you’ll be alright. I’m not worried.” She spoke the last sentence in a tone that, in fact, sounded very worried. Terra glanced at Ventus, faith in himself lowering by the minute. 

Aqua shrugged off the moment, trying to be positive. “I’ll be back as soon as I can. This sounds like a long mission though, so don’t wait for me for anything.” 

“Be careful, Aqua.” Ventus smiled. Aqua pecked a kiss to the top of his head. 

“Yeah, whatever.” Vanitas rolled his eyes. Aqua kissed his head as well, Vanitas hiding his face. 

Terra stood up and took one of her hands. “If you need anything”- 

“I know.” 

“Please stay safe.” He squeezed her hand. 

“I will be. Kairi and I have got this.” 

“I believe it.” Terra let go of her hand, and she hugged him tight. He held her close. As she let go, she sneaked a quick kiss beside his ear. Before he could react, she was out the door. 

“Good luck with Stella!” She waved, and was gone. 

Terra stood dumbfounded, his hand hovering over her kiss. The world was nonexistent to him- the tiny warm spot on his cheek was the only thing that mattered. He couldn’t believe she did that. Maybe she was tired and was autopilot from the boys? It couldn’t have meant anything. But if it did… 

“Terra!” Ventus waved his hands in front of Terra’s face. He jumped, coming back to reality. 

“What is it?” 

“Stella’s already crying.” He pointed to the basket. Chirithy had crawled onto the counter, cooing to calm her down. Vanitas ignored the room, face in his food. 

Terra turned a shade redder. “This is gonna be a long day.” He quickly grabbed a warmed bottle, scooping up the crying baby. He propped her up in one arm, tipping the bottle with the other. Droplets of milk missed her mouth, lazily falling down her face and on Terra. “Could you grab me a towel, Ven?” 

Ventus picked up a napkin. “This work?” 

“Yeah, sure.” Terra sighed. Ventus tossed it over, and with Terra’s arms busy, it flopped onto Stella’s stomach. Ven couldn’t help but laugh, Terra shaking his head. “You know what, that works. It’s close enough. I’ll fix it later.” 

Vanitas warily watched her drink. “So what do you need me to do?” 

“I just need you to be ready when I call you for help.” Terra answered. “We all know Aqua’s the natural when it comes to this, so I’m gonna need all the help I can get.” 

“You can count on us, Terra.” Ventus puffed his chest out. 

Stella spit out the extra milk in her mouth, a waterfall of milk and bile running down her face and onto Terra. Vanitas belly laughed as he watched the life drain from Terra’s face. 

“...do you want more napkins?” Ventus offered. 

“Yes, Ven. I would appreciate it.” Terra spoke with some struggle, a spot on his chest unpleasantly cold. Stella wasn’t drinking more, so Terra set down the bottle and rested her on his shoulder. He patted her back with one had and took a stack of napkins with the other, haphazardly drying the stain and wiping Stella’s face. 

“Alright, well, I’ve had my entertainment.” Vanitas stretched his arms as he stood up. “Ven, you still down to spar today?” 

Ventus perked up. “Oh yeah! Would it be okay if we took time to train, Terra?” 

Terra groaned as he processed this, thinking if he could actually handle this alone. “Sure, sure. Go have fun, maybe me and Stella will come watch.” 

“Sweet!” Ventus grabbed the dirty dishes on the table, dropping them in the sink. “Vani, let me wash these and I’ll be right out.” 

Vanitas shrugged and walked out. Stella burped, and Terra held her in his arms. Her eyes were wide and bright, looking for entertainment. Even when puked on, Terra still felt this joy in his chest when he saw those green eyes. Ventus clapped his hands as he finished the dishes, jumping around the table and running out to meet Vanitas. 

Terra wiggled a finger under Stella’s chin. “Whaddya say kid, wanna watch your uncles?” Terra chuckled. Stella laughed, wiggling around happily. “I’ll take that as a yes.” Terra laid her in her basket, wiped himself off, and walked to the yard. 

The brothers wasted no time getting into the fight, as always. Terra sat on the grass nearby, propping the basket on a rock so Stella could see. 

Both of them were in full gear, keyblades clashing at the sky as they ran circles around each other. They didn’t need to be in armor to spar, but Vanitas always felt more comfortable with his visor, so the others would gear up to help include him. It was fascinating to Terra to watch such nimble and quick fighters. He could hear Stella clap along with the noise of the blades. 

“So weak,” Vanitas teased, teleporting behind his partner. 

“Says you.” Ventus spun around, knocking him off his feet. 

Vanitas summoned a tendril of darkness that tripped up Ventus. “I fail to see your point.” 

They were so evenly matched, the battle could last forever. Terra or Aqua usually had to break them apart after a while. Terra itches around the armour on his shoulder, knowing this would be another one of those times. 

There was a flash of something. Terra didn’t know what it was, but he swore he saw something dark flicker in and out. He scanned the area before looking closer at the fighters. Vanitas was covered in dark power, the black and purple radiating from him in waves. This wasn’t new per se, but the sheer amount this time around was striking. And with each swing of his keyblade it only grew stronger, the ground beneath his feet turning black. It was only when the shadow began to move away that Terra got worried. 

Before he could stop it, an unversed- a Buckle Bruiser- crawled out of the earth a few feet away from the battle. 

“Vanitas!” Terra yelled. The boys ignored his call, eyes locked on each other. Terra watched another shadow begin to form before his instincts finally kicked in. He jumped up and ran toward the boys, armour equipped, keyblade ready. He threw himself between them as Vanitas struck hard, knocking Terra’s breath out of his chest. He rolled onto the ground, knocking off the dirt. Vanitas, shocked, dropped his blade and froze in place. 

“Terra!” Ventus kneeled beside him. “Vanitas, what did you do?” 

“I- I didn’t see-!” 

“Vanitas!” Terra pointed behind the trio, unversed rapidly multiplying. Vanitas took off his mask, his face pale as a sheet. 

Ventus pulled Terra up from the dirt. “Why are you making unversed?” He frantically ask. 

“I don’t know, I didn’t mean-” Vanitas’s hands shook. “I thought I was getting better!” 

That shadow around Vanitas grew as he panicked, more and more unversed spawning on the grounds of all types. Archravens circled in the sky, Floods skittered around, and Scrapers dug at the dirt with their claws. 

Terra stepped up to Vanitas, clapping a hand on his shoulder. He spoke in a low, even voice. “Focus, Van. You’re alright, you’re safe. They listen to you. They won’t harm anyone you don’t want them to. Right?” 

Vanitas slowly nodded. Ventus wedged himself between them and the unversed, a keyblade ready for an emergency. Terra let go as Vanitas took in a breath. 

As he stood there, his eyes closed, the unversed began to twitch. They almost seemed confused. Slowly though, the dark creatures began to retire back to the shadows. 

Until he heard a sound. A light, bubbly sound, full of life. The unversed all turned to the little basket, a giggling Stella inside. Terra felt his heart sink. The unversed began to charge for the baby. 

“Stella!” Terra screamed, running for the basket. A Flood got there first, it’s nimble arms crawling on the basket. Terra threw his keyblade, the unversed disappearing in a cloud of smoke. Vanitas doubled over, falling to the ground. 

Ventus bent down, checking on him. Vanitas kept shaking his head. “I’m not doing this. Please believe me. I’m not doing this.” 

Terra, now at Stella, fought off the unversed that got too close. With each strike, Vanitas curled tighter into a ball. 

“You gotta take back control! Stella’s gonna get hurt!” Ventus pulled Vanitas up on his feet, but he soon fell back down. 

As Terra fought off the horde, an Archraven swooped down and caught Stella in its beak. It flew up high, tossing her to the other unversed. 

Ventus watched the spectacle. “Terra!” He pointed up at the sky. Terra followed the gesture, feeling sick to his stomach. He ran under them and yelled “Graviara!”, the birds dropping like rocks. As he swung to kill the one holding Stella, it threw the giggling baby to another Archraven. Terra shot a blizzard charge toward that one, who threw her to a nearby Bruiser. It surprisingly held her correctly, hopping from foot to foot excitedly. Terra could hear Stella clapping happily as the unversed ran away with her. He struck the back through to the stomach, the Bruiser fading into dust. Terra raised his arms to catch the falling baby, which was scooped up by a Scrapper. 

Ventus, watching this happen, tried once more to knock sense into Vanitas. “Come on man, you’re gonna keep getting hurt if you don’t get up!” His words were desperate. 

“It’s not me. I can’t control them.” Vanitas winced as Terra swung at the Scrapper. “I’m sorry.” 

Stella, her current carrier vanquished, laid on the ground. She had no idea the danger she was in- this was the most happy Terra had seen her even. He bent to scoop her up in his arms, but a Hareraiser wrapped its ears around the baby, running away with her. Terra sighed and gave chase. 

The Hareraiser arrived at the brothers, Vanitas completely defeated. It curled into his side, still holding Stella tight. She flopped her arms onto his back, blowing a raspberry. 

Vanitas hesitantly looked up, Stella’s drool falling on his shirt. His shoulders relaxed as he painfully pushed himself up. Vanitas hesitantly unraveled the Hareraiser’s ears, pulling Stella into his lap. He laid his hand on the unversed, who drained into a puddle of shadow and disappeared. The other unversed- or what was left, followed suit around Terra. 

“Van!” Terra sat down with the trio. “Are you alright? I’m so sorry, I had to save Stella, I wasn’t thinking… What happened?” 

Van sat up straighter, the pain beginning to subside. He pulled Stella up into his arms, holding her close. “I don’t know what happened. I guess I… I got too caught up in sparring, that my dark side took over again without me noticing. And when I heard Stella, I completely lost control of the unversed. It’s like they went feral, or were listening to someone else, I couldn’t do anything to stop them,” Vanitas held out the baby to Terra, who cradled her in his arms. “I’m actually really sorry. I’m the goddamned idiot this time.” 

“Van…” Ventus touched his arm, but Vanitas shrugged it off. “It’s not your fault. We all make mistakes.” 

“Maybe you do.” Vanitas hissed. He pushed himself up to his feet, brushing off the grass. “I’m going to my room.” 

Terra opened his mouth to speak, but knew it was better to give him space. As Vanitas walked off, Terra and Ventus got to their feet and analyzed Stella. 

“She’s okay, right?” Ven peered over. 

“Yeah, I think so.” Terra brushed her hair down with his fingers. “Oh, shit.” 

“What?” Ventus’s eyes went wide. 

“She has a cut on her forehead! Terra gently grazed it to show Ven. 

“I… don’t see it.” 

“Seriously?” Terra pushed away her hair. Sure enough, there was a barely visible pale pink mark high on her forehead. “Aqua’s gonna kill me.” 

“She’s not gonna notice, dude.” Ventus shook his head. “It’ll probably get healed by the time she gets back.” 

“Ven, you know Aqua. She has a third eye for these things.” 

“I think you’re fine.” Ven shook his head. “Believe it or not, I think it’s gonna take a lot more for Aqua to be angry at you.” 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” The boys began walking toward the castle, picking up Stella’s basket as they did. 

Ventus raised the pitch of his voice. “Oh, Terra! You dreamy hunk! Let’s sleep in the same bed and raise a child together! And I’ll kiss your head before I leave! I l-o-v-e you!” 

“I will send you to talk to Vanitas right now.” 

“Fine,” Ventus laughed, gently nudging Terra. “I will go talk to him though. I’m just gonna give him some time alone to cool off first.” 

“Sounds good to me.” Terra nodded. Suddenly, his phone rang in his pocket, and they paused in their tracks. He pulled it out, seeing two missed messages from Aqua. His body immediately set on fire, quickly answering the call. Her face appeared on the screen, Kairi right beside her. 

“Hey you!” Aqua smiled brightly. “Did you not have your phone on you?” 

“Y-yeah, no, I uh”- 

“Me and Vanitas were sparring and he got too caught up in the action!” Ventus swung an arm around Terra’s shoulders. He had to get on his tip toes to reach. 

“It was a really close match.” Terra blushed. 

“It always is.” Aqua giggled. 

“It’s like you’re the same person.” Kairi stuck out her tongue. 

“How’s Stella? She’s with you right?” 

“Yeah! She’s well, she was cheering them on beside me.” Terra quickly turned the camera to her. She was still wide-eyed with wonder, but her body was tired from the situation earlier. Terra flipped the phone back before it could focus on her forehead. 

“Awwww!” Kairi gushed. “She’s such a good baby.” 

“How’s the mission going?” Terra asked. 

“Oh, fine. We got here a bit ago and have a pretty good lead, we’re about to head there. I just wanted to check in first.” 

“Everything is good here!” Terra nodded. “Go be badasses.” 

“Terra…” Aqua blushed. 

“Hell yeah!” Kairi bounced, flexing her arm to the screen. 

“Be safe! Bring something cool back!” Ventus pushed into the screen. 

“Will do,” Aqua shook her head. “Love you guys. Bye!” She waved and hung up. 

“Holy fuck, that was close.” Terra nearly collapsed on himself. Ventus laughed, mostly out of relief. 

“So let’s agree to never tell her about today, right?” Ventus spoke. 

“I won’t tell if you don’t.” Terra raised a fist. Ventus bumped it with his own, and they walked back in their home. 

The next few hours passed quietly. Terra kept checking his phone, but Aqua had been silent since. Ventus had ventured up to talk to Vanitas, and he only heard minimal yelling, which was impressive. He had taken care of Stella’s needs, and she had fallen asleep again. Terra had put on a bit of salve for her forehead cut, just in case. 

He sat on the couch, bored with no one to talk to. He could work out, but he was paranoid about leaving Stella alone for even a second. He knew she would be okay, but he didn’t want to take any more chances today. He pulled out his phone and flipped through the screens absentmindedly. His lock screen was Ventus, upside down in a dance pose. His home screen was Aqua, sitting alone by the cliff side, looking up at the stars. She looked so serene and perfect. Every time Terra saw the picture he felt his heart melt. 

It was 12:23. Half of the day was gone, Terra thought. His stomach grumbled. 

That’s what he could do- he could make lunch for the group! Sure he wasn’t the best cook, that was more Aqua and Vanitas’s strongsuit, but he wasn’t one to back down from a challenge. 

Terra gently carried the sleepy Stella into the kitchen, letting her snooze away in her basket on the table. He haphazardly opened and closed drawers until he found a cookbook with a French title, Little Chef’s picture proudly on the front. Knowing he couldn’t do all of the fancy things Little Chef does, he flipped to a small section of “Little Chef Approved Homestyle Recipes”. People from Twilight Town had submitted their recipes, and the best ones got a spot in the book. Terra’s finger skimmed through the section, landing on Chicken and Dumplings. It seemed simple enough. 

Step one: set chicken broth to boil. Terra dug deep into the fridge, pulling out a small jar of broth. He spooned some out and dropped it into a pot. The consistency didn’t seem like it was one to boil, but he wasn’t about to go against the recipe. 

Step two: make the dumplings. It’s just flour and water with some light seasonings. Terra dumped a package of flour into a bowl and ran it under the sink. Dunking his hands into the dough, it began to coagulate onto his fingers. How was he supposed to shape them when it was so sticky? He raised his hands from the bowl, the mound of dough holding tight to his palms. 

Maybe this wasn’t the greatest idea. Terra always forgot just how bad a cook he was until he was actually cooking. 

He realized he hadn’t actually put any seasoning in the dough yet. He desperately tried to scrape off the goop, salvaging about half of it. The other half had become makeshift mittens up to his wrists. Now, where did Vanitas hide all the spices? He pried open various cabinets with his elbows, bits of dough splattering around him. When Terra finally found the tiny jars, he had another revelation: he had no idea what spices he needed. He grabbed the names he recognized- oregano, cayenne, basil- and popped the tops with his chin. The bottle was slathered in dough, but as long as it didn’t get on the lid he could just clean them later. He shook out a hearty amount of each spice into the bowl, dunking his hands back in. With more dry ingredients, the dough began to be less sticky. 

“You know, maybe I do have a handle on this.” He spoke to himself. 

Then the pot caught on fire. 

He quickly spun around, a small cloud of black smoke coming from the chicken broth. Panicking, and speaking every curse he knew under his breath, he dropped the dough in the bowl and grabbed the pot. He instinctively let go before he burnt himself, forgetting that fire is, in fact, very hot. He snatched up a pair of oven mitts and totally negated putting them on. Instead, he slapped them on the sides and used those to grip the pot, carrying it to the sink. He ran some water in, and the fire exploded higher. 

“What the fuck are you doing?” Vanitas and Ventus stood in the doorway. 

“What does it look like I’m doing?” Terra panicked. 

“Looks to me like you’re being a dumbass.” 

“Vanitas!” Terra bit his tongue before he could say some choice words. 

“Stop being a baby, move over.” Vanitas grabbed a lid and placed it on the pot. The fire dimmed within the pot, and after a few minutes, was extinguished. Terra tiredly rubbed his face, dough sticking to his cheeks. 

“I see you’re doing better, at least?” Terra asked. 

Vanitas paused. “You seem to be doing worse.” 

Ventus chimes in from behind. “What were you trying to do, anyway?” 

“I wanted to make lunch for all of us.” Terra stood defeated. 

“Please never do that again.” Vanitas began to inspect the dough. 

“Actually, for once, I agree with him.” Ven sheepishly smiled. “At least not alone.” 

Vanitas plucked a small bit of dough and popped it in his mouth, immediately spitting it out in the trash. “Literally dude, how do you fuck up dumplings? That’s up there with pasta on how easy it is to make.” 

“I get it, I’m a bad cook.” Terra shook his head. 

Stella began to randomly cry. Terra looked as if he could collapse. He began to wash his hands before he could pick up the baby. “Why did you two come down anyway?” 

“Didn’t you get Aqua’s text?” Ven asked. 

“Her what?” Terra’s face went pale. 

“Yeah, she’s gonna be here any minute.” Vanitas shrugged. 

“WHAT?” Terra frantically dried his hands and scooped up Stella, bouncing her on his shoulder. “You guys, you need to help me clean up this mess before she gets home.” 

“That’s gonna be a little hard.” Ventus scratched his neck. “She sent that message ten minutes ago.” 

Before Terra could scream, the door opened, and Aqua tiredly shambled in. “I’m home!” She still wore a smile. She straightened herself out, looking into the kitchen. She blinked a few times, no one saying anything. She just took in the view of two tired teens, a distraught Terra holding a crying baby, a still smoking pot, and dough flung everywhere. And she laughed. A gentle and magical laugh full of life. 

“It seems I can’t let you guys be alone for more than a minute, huh?” She shook her head. 

“You’re not mad?” Terra spoke hesitantly. 

“Mad? No,” she smiled. “Tired, yes. Stressed? Absolutely. But mad? Not at all. But I need to know, what were you trying to do?” She opened her arms to Terra, who passed Stella over to her. She naturally swayed and bounced, calming the baby down. 

“I wanted to make lunch for all of us…” Terra said sheepishly. 

Aqua’s eyes softened. “That’s so sweet,” she trailed off a moment. “But, Van can take it from here, right?” 

Vanitas cracked his knuckles. “Yeah, sure, I got it. But someone has to clean this shitshow.” 

“I caused it, I’ll clean it.” Terra spoke up. 

“Actually,” Aqua interjected, “Ven, can you help clean? I need to talk to Terra for a moment, and then he can help.” 

“Oh, uh,” Ventus winced at the mess. He shrugged, defeated. “Yeah, sure.” 

“Thanks.” Aqua mussed his hair. She nodded Terra to the living room, and he obediently followed, trying not to drag out the mess. The duo sat on the couch, Stella happily blowing bubbles in Aqua’s arms. 

“How was the mission?” Terra wrapped an arm around her, holding her closer to see the baby. 

“Complicated,” She trailed off. “We knew we wouldn’t be able to get more information today so we decided to split ways and regroup with a plan later.” 

“Is it really that big?” 

“We’re not sure. I’m not sure how it could be that big after the death of Master Xehanort… and I’m scared to find out.” 

The mention of the name made Terra tense up. He squeezed Aqua’s shoulder, resting his free hand on Stella. “Listen, whatever it is, we can handle it. Let’s not worry too much before we have all the information. Right?” 

Aqua was silent. She rested her head on his shoulder. They stared at the small baby, her green eyes full of wonder. 

After a few minutes, Ventus knocked on the archway to catch their attention. Terra panicked, creating space between him and Aqua. She held Stella tight to her chest. 

“I Uh”- Ventus hesitated, realizing he broke a moment. “Need some help, if that’s okay.” 

“I got it.” Terra stood up. “You gonna be okay?” He whispered to Aqua. She nodded. Terra made his way into the kitchen, noises of cleaning supplies filling the house. 

Aqua smiled to herself, looking back down to Stella. She pushed her hair back. She must of scratched herself, a faint cut on her forehead. She gently kissed it and bounced her to sleep.


	11. The Talk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ventus and Vanitas enlist some outside help for Terra and Aqua.

Ventus slammed his hands on the table. “Do you know why I called you all here today?” 

The room, filled with everyone they could think of except Aqua and Terra, was silent. 

Kairi, holding Stella in her arms, spoke up. “I mean, I was here to babysit, but I feel like that’s the wrong answer.” 

“I mean, I heard it takes a village to raise a child, but this is a bit overkill.” Lea added. 

Ventus shook his head. “It’s not about Stella. It’s about Terra and Aqua.” 

“What about them?” Isa raised a brow. 

“Did something happen?” Sora sat up. 

“They’re nauseating.” Vanitas, beside Ventus, melted onto the table. 

“I’m sorry?” Namine tilted her head. 

Ventus thought a moment. “Raise your hand if you think Terra and Aqua are dating.” 

Sora, Kairi, Namine, Roxas, and Xion raised their hands. Lea shook his hand, unsure. 

“And that’s the problem. They’re not!” Ventus slammed the table again. “They’re clearly head over heels for one another. And Stella has made it a thousand times more apparent.” 

“I mean, isn’t that a good thing? Congrats to them?” Riku asked. 

“They won’t admit it!” Ventus slouched. “It’s tiring.” 

“If I have to hear one more failed flirt, I will vomit an unversed on them.” Vanitas spoke, deadpan. 

“So we need a plan.” Ventus puffed his chest. 

“A plan?” Sora asked. 

“Yes! To get them to confess to each other!” 

“I’m so fucking on board with this.” Lea clapped his hands, a wide smile on his face. 

Isa lightly slapped him. “Language.” 

Roxas rolled his eyes at Isa’s comment. “What exactly is your plan for this?” 

“Yeah, I’m on board, but what exactly do we have to do with this?” Xion added. 

“We’re gonna need to make it an event. I’ve talked to Terra extensively trying to get him to confess, but he refuses. The only idea I have is physically making them go on a date. And I need as much help as I can get.” Ventus answered. 

Everyone, unable to think of a rebuttal, silently agreed. Ventus spoke again. “So, first off, where should the date be? It can’t be here.” 

“Twilight Town could be nice for dinner and a movie.” Isa suggested. 

“That’s a fair idea. Let’s keep brainstorming though.” Ventus nodded. 

“Didn’t they like Cinderella’s castle? We could make a ball or something.” Namine added. 

“That’s too formal for a first date.” 

“We could make a less formal one at King Mickey’s Castle?” Riku spoke. 

“Aqua is still on shaky grounds with Mickey after leaving her for ten years.” Ventus scratched his neck. Riku bit his tongue, temporarily forgetting that. 

“What about at the Islands?” Sora shrugged. “Beach dates are fun.” 

Ventus jumped up. “That’s perfect!” 

“Aw, they could share a paupou!” Kairi smiled. 

“That’d be so cute!” Sora agreed. 

“That’s hands down what we gotta do.” Ventus grinned. “We can trick them to going to the Islands, and then we can all leave small packages around to help them out. A picnic basket, some sand castle tools, extra clothes to stay the night…” Ventus counted off on his fingers. 

“How do we trick them there?” Lea spoke up. “We’re glazing over that. And Aqua is not one to fall for something so juvenile.” 

Vanitas faked a cough. “I literally summon darkness. I’ll spawn some there.” 

“And how will they know to come?” Isa added. 

Vanitas’s eyes went wide, clearly forgetting the semantics. Riku shuffled in his spot. “We can video call Terra and Aqua and show them. Act like we’re fighting the unversed. Then Vanitas can be hiding somewhere that they can’t reach him. Therefore, the two of them have to come and sort it out.” 

“That’s pretty crafty for someone with one brain cell.” Roxas admitted. 

“I pride myself in my brain cell.” Riku playfully punched his arm. 

“This plan is shaping up well!” Ventus bounced. 

“So when should we do it?” Kairi asked. 

“As soon as possible!” 

“Tomorrow, ideally.” Vanitas clarified. “Let them rest tonight, then send them off around dinner time.” 

The room buzzed. “Can we really put it together by then?” Namine asked. 

“Definitely!” Ventus pumped a fist in the air. “Let’s do it!”


	12. Date Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ventus executes his plan to get Terra and Aqua to go on a date. Will it work though?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is literally just a super long chapter with tooth-rotting fluff. Hope you enjoy <3

Aqua, having just changed Stella’s diaper, sat beside Terra. “It’s nice to have these lazy days every once in a while.” 

“You can say that again.” Terra chuckled. He leaned in close to Stella, blowing raspberries and making funny faces. She giggled and clapped her hands. 

“Especially after yesterday,” Aqua shook her head. “I can’t stop thinking about what’s causing such random and serious anomalies of darkness.” 

“Hey, I promise it’s alright.” Terra turned her chin slightly to see her eyes. “Whatever is happening, we all have a handle on it. You don’t have to worry.” 

She gave a small smile. “As long as you all are safe, I’ll be alright.” 

“And none of us are going anywhere.” Terra assured. 

Aqua curled into Terra’s side. After a moment, her phone buzzed. She clumsily pulled it out of her pocket, answering the video call. 

“Aqua! And Terra, good, you’re there too!” Riku looked serious. 

“Riku? What’s going on?” Aqua sat up straight, holding Stella close. 

“Unversed.” He flipped the camera, a small group of floods on the sand. They almost looked like they were playing. Riku quickly flipped it back. “We can’t get ahold of Vanitas, can you guys get here and help out?” 

“I thought Vanitas was in his room?” Terra asked. 

“Go check, I’ll get things together.” Aqua nodded, and Terra jogged upstairs. “Can you send Kairi over to take care of Stella?” 

“Sora is helping her gather her things now.” Riku nodded. 

“Alright. We’ll be there. Hang tight.” Aqua closed the call. She gently kissed Stella’s head, laying her in the basket. She grabbed two emergency bags, making sure they were still stuffed with potions and poultices. She strapped one around her. 

Terra and Ventus tripped down the stairs. “Vanitas isn’t here.” Terra looked clearly confused and frustrated. He took his bag from Aqua and strapped it on. 

“Don’t worry guys, I got Stella until Kairi gets here. I’ll keep trying to contact Vani.” 

“Thanks.” Aqua kissed his head. “We’ll be right back.” 

“Stay safe.” Ventus hid a smile as Terra shook his hair. 

The duo went outside and summoned their armor and riders, flying out at the speed of light. They took a shortcut corridor to Destiny Islands, landing on the beach. They summoned their keyblades, scanning the area. 

But it was empty. 

“Did we land in the right place?” Terra put away his armor and blade, scratching his head. 

Aqua put hers away as well, but didn’t let her guard down. “Should we call Riku?” 

“Oh hey, over there!” Terra saw a small parcel in the sand, a tiny flag beside it. 

“I don’t see what that has to do with the unversed.” Aqua hesitated. 

“We gotta gather clues.” Terra shrugged. He walked over and kneeled beside it, Aqua close behind him. 

Terra was silent a moment, reading a small note attached to the box. He let out a loud sigh, standing upright with a tired smile. “I think it may have been a false alarm.” He handed Aqua the note. 

“What?”- Aqua read silently. 

T + A, 

When was the last time you guys had some relaxing alone time? The answer is right now! We can take care of Stella, take the night for yourselves and have fun. We love you! 

-Ventus 

“He’s such a little shit.” Terra shook his head. 

“I really want to be pissed, but it’s too sweet to be angry at.” Aqua relaxed her shoulders. 

“What do you wanna do? Wanna head back?” Terra offered. 

“No…” Aqua trailed off. “He went to the trouble of asking the others for help. Might as well entertain him for a little while.” She shrugged. 

“Alright,” Terra kneeled back down to the parcel. “Let’s see what’s in here then.” 

He carefully untied the string, the fabric falling into a fairly large square. Inside was a small covered basket. 

“He really made a picnic for us?” Aqua hid a smile as she sat on the cloth. 

“Guess so. I’ll take it, I’m starving.” Terra chuckled and sat across from her. He opened the basket, emptying the contents: two peanut butter and jelly sandwiches carefully covered in plastic wrap. 

Aqua laughed. “I guess Vanitas was too busy to cook.” 

Terra laughed along and handed her one, unwrapping his own. “We honestly shouldn’t have expected anything less.” 

That sat in comfortable silence while they ate. The sandwiches were suspiciously warm from the heat of the island, but they didn’t complain. They looked out over the ocean, the clear blue waves gently crashing along the shore. Between the sound of the waves and the subtle warmth on their skin, they both felt more relaxed than they had in weeks. Perhaps they did need a moment to themselves. 

“Why do you think Ven went through all of this trouble for us?” Aqua asked. 

It caught Terra off guard. “I mean, he loves us. I guess he saw that we were getting tired and wanted to help?” 

“Maybe.” Aqua traced lines in the sand. “But why now? It seems out of the blue.” 

Terra shrugged. “I wouldn’t think too hard into it. Ven’s a simple guy.” 

Aqua gave a gentle laugh through her nose. “I suppose.” She stood up and stretched her arms. “Did you wanna walk down the shore a bit?” 

“Sure.” Terra’s smile shined up at her. He haphazardly stuffed the picnic set back together, stood up, and offered his arm. Aqua rolled her eyes, locking her arm with his. 

“Lead the way.” Terra half bowed and stretched his arm forward. 

“My pleasure.” Aqua smirked. 

They quietly treaded across the sand, taking in the calm environment around them. It was a rare and delightful change of pace. The sun had just begun to set, light oranges and purples beginning to paint the sky. Through the clear water they could see small fish darting through rainbow coral. Gorgeous shells scattered the shoreline, swept up by the falling tide. Palm trees stood tall above them and provided them with partial shade. The didn’t have to walk far before they came across another box, much smaller than before. Aqua glanced at Terra before hesitantly letting go of his arm, skipping over to it. The note inside read: 

T + A,

Riku, Sora, and I save up skipping stones, so we thought you could have some! Have fun!

Kairi <3 

“Skipping stones!” Aqua dug one out and held it up in the air to show. 

“What are those?” Terra gently took the rock from her hand, examining the smooth sides. 

“Have you never skipped a stone before?” 

“I’m not sure how you would.” Terra chuckled to himself. 

“Oh, it’s simple! Here, watch this.” Aqua took the rock she was holding and stretched her arm behind her. Throwing it out to the ocean, the pebble quickly treaded across the water, before sinking into the abyss. Tiny ripples cut through the water into beautiful mathematical shapes. 

“Woah.” Terra’s eyes went wide. “That’s actually kinda cool.” 

“Right?” Aqua’s eyes shined. “It’s fun, try it!” 

Terra picked up a stone from the box and positioned himself to the ocean. He threw the rock with as much power as he could muster. It flew about halfway from Aqua’s, and sank immediately. 

“Awh, what?” Terra slumped his shoulders. “Did I get a bad rock or something?” 

Aqua hid a small laugh behind her hand, shaking her head. “It’s not about force. It’s about technique.” She picked up another rock. “You hold it close to you, and feel it as an extension of your body. Then it’s more of a flicking motion when you let go, like throwing a frisbee.” She acted upon it as she spoke, the rock skidding across once more. “It’s more of a zen activity.” 

Terra picked up his next stone, following Aqua’s instruction. It successfully skipped twice before sinking. 

“I did it!” Terra threw an arm up in the air. He sheepishly brought it back. “It wasn’t near as good as yours though.” 

“Oh, I had ten years of experience when I was”- Aqua paused a moment before shaking her head. “I’ve had a lot of practice. Here, let me help you this time.” She picked up another stone, handing it to Terra. She stood close behind him, laying her arms on his. Terra felt his whole body temperature rise, suddenly very conscious of wherever Aqua touched. Together, they flung the rock to the ocean, skipping it the farthest yet. 

Aqua beamed. “See?” 

Terra froze, dumbfounded by Aqua’s purity and beauty. He could see the stars in her teal eyes, flowers blooming from her dark blue hair, bubbles floating from her light skin. As the sky slowly turned orange, her complimentary figure seemed otherworldly. He’d been touched by a true goddess. 

“Terra? You okay?” Aqua raised a brow. 

Terra faked a cough, turning away from her. Why couldn’t he remember his train of thought? All he could think of was- 

“You look very beautiful tonight.” Terra couldn’t help the words slipping from his lips. 

Aqua was taken aback. “T...Terra…” she murmured. 

Terra, with no warning, suddenly jumped into the sea. 

“Terra!” Aqua jumped in after him. The cool water shocked her skin. She swam after him, the crystal clear water waving out around them. She dived under, swimming underneath him, and surfaced with him in her arms. He was still, terror and shock on his face. 

“What is this all for?” Aqua nervously laughed. 

“I- I…” Terra stuttered. “I panicked.” 

“So you swam into the open ocean?” 

“I don’t know! I’m a dumbass!” He flailed before he calmed down, looking dejected. 

Aqua didn’t know what to say. She watched him a moment, realizing just how beautiful the scene was. Terra, surrounded by rainbow coral, his hair drowned and framing his face. His muscular arms floated above the water. The orange sun made his brown eyes turn into warm pools of honey. 

Aqua swam inches in front of him. “Hey.” She whispered. He looked up, immediately lost in her eyes. 

“I’m sorry.” Terra sheepishly spoke. 

“So am I.” Aqua glanced away. 

“Why are you sorry? I’m the one who”- 

Aqua swiftly raised her hands to cup Terra’s jaw, kissing him softly. She could feel him freeze, before his lips curled up in a smile. 

She reluctantly let go. “That’s why.” 

Terra’s eyes were wide. “Aqua, I…” he paused. “Can I do another dumbass thing?” 

“Depends?” Aqua laughed. “Am I going to have to chase you again?” 

“I think we’re done chasing.” Terra grinned. 

He pulled her waist close to him, kissing her hard. They sunk into the water, truly part of their own world. Aqua wrapped her arms around his shoulders, a hand through his spiraling hair. One of Terra’s hands snaked up her back, keeping her close and safe. 

They raised to the surface for air, giggling helplessly. 

“I’d ask to do that again, but I don’t wanna drown.” Aqua chuckled. 

“Understandable.” Terra shook his head. “Should we go back to shore?” 

“Yeah, probably.” Aqua nodded. 

They quickly swam back, staggering onto the bank. Their clothes were drenched, dripping onto the sand. They took a moment to wring them out, water pouring out of the fabric. 

“Probably should have brought a new pair of clothes.” Terra scratched his neck guiltily. 

“They’ll dry out.” Aqua reassured. She felt her phone vibrate. “Hold on.” She pulled it out of her pocket. 

“Good damn thing these are waterproof.” Terra chuckled. 

Light Twin> btw, theres a empty cabin on the beach 

Light Twin> if you wanna stay the night 

Evil Twin> we gave the islanders rooms so they can help with the kid 

“Do you wanna see if they left pajamas?” Aqua asked. 

“I mean it’s still a bit early…” Terra spoke. 

“We can walk around in dry pjs.” Aqua rolled her eyes. 

“Oh! Then yeah, sure.” Terra blushed. He held out his arm for Aqua to take. She took his hand instead, interlacing their fingers. Not wanting to spoil the moment, they walked silently to the cabin. Terra opened the door for Aqua, and the warmth welcomed them in. It was small, obviously used for visitors. A king sized bed took up most of the room, different decorations of ocean life posted on the walls. There was a nook for a bathroom as well, and a few small kitchen appliances sat on the counters. On the bed were two boxes, one significantly smaller than the other. 

“What’s it this time?” Aqua asked, opening the bigger one. 

“Hopefully clothes.” Terra shrugged, taking the smaller. 

Aqua sighed relief as she opened hers. “They are!” She pulled out her big bubbles shirt. “No note though. You?” 

Terra cleared his throat dramatically. 

T + A,

Hope tonight goes well. ;) 

-Lea (Isa won’t sign this :,() 

Terra dug inside the box, using his thumb and forefinger to pull out the object. 

“Are you kidding me?” Aqua blushed a dark red. 

“Handcuffs? Really?” Terra’s face was just as red. 

“They better not be used.” Aqua’s eyes widened. 

“Aaaalright.” Terra took the box outside. He cast firaga on it, then watera, before bringing it back inside and throwing it away. 

“Good call.” Aqua shook her head. “I’m gonna change in the bathroom real quick. They also left some dry boxers for you.” She wrapped up her bundle of clothes and slipped into the other room. Terra stripped down and flung his drenched clothes aside, throwing on his boxers as well. He saw a small mirror from the corner of his eye, and he looked at himself a moment. His hands worked at his hair to spike it up again. He took a deep breath to calm himself. 

Aqua came back in, her comfy shirt billowing off of her. She immediately covered her face with a squeak. 

“You okay?” Terra asked. 

“Seeing you shirtless has a slightly different connotation now.” Her hands muffled her voice. 

“Oh! Uh- I can like… get a towel or something?” Terra panicked, looking around. 

“No, no!” Aqua laughed, shaking her hands. “God, don’t do that. I just… you are very handsome.” 

Terra felt his ears get warm. “Coming from you, that means the world.” 

Aqua rolled her eyes, her arms crossed close to her. “Did you want to watch the sunset?” 

“I’d love to!” Terra smiled. He opened the door, and the duo stepped out of the cabin. They didn’t walk far, sitting on the warm sand. The sun was setting quickly, purple beginning to edge its way into the sky. 

Aqua quietly rested her head on Terra’s shoulder. He wrapped his arm around her. 

“So…” Aqua traced the sand with a finger. “How long have you wanted to do that?” 

Terra coughed, unsure how to answer. “D...do what?” 

“You know what I’m talking about.” Aqua sat up, a sly smile on her face. “Or do I need to remind you?” 

“I mean, I wouldn’t say no to a reminder. Just to make sure we’re on the same page.” Terra winked. 

Aqua playfully pushed him. “So how long?” 

Terra leaned back. “Oh, I dunno. Since like…” he thought a moment. “Little before Ventus came?”

“What?” Aqua blushed hard. 

“Remember when I said I’m a dumbass?” He sheepishly scratched his arm. 

“No, you’re not dumb! I just”- Aqua bit her lip. “Would you believe me if I said I’ve always had feelings for you? Since the beginning?” 

Terra’s eyes widened. “Really?” 

“You’re my best friend, I’ve never been as close to anyone else before. I always wanted to confess. I’ve come up with such perfect ways to confess to you, I made whole situations in my head. But I never wanted to hurt what we have.” 

“So I’ve been telling Ven about my feelings for you for over ten years for no reason?” Terra belly laughed. “Oh, he’s gonna kill me.” 

“He knew?” Aqua’s jaw dropped. 

“He’s known for so long!” 

“That’s why he made this date!” Aqua flung sand to the ocean. “He was done with both of our dumb asses!” She laughed along with Terra. Terra, laying on the sand, pulled Aqua down to him. They kissed a moment, trying not to laugh as they did. 

“We’ve got a lot of catching up to do.” Terra beamed. 

“I haven’t felt this happy since… well, since we adopted Stella.” 

“Wait are we”- Terra paused. “Are we actually her mom and dad now?” 

Aqua bolted upright. “Am I mom?” 

Terra sat up with her. “I think so.” 

“You really think we’ll be good parents?” Aqua wrung her hands. Terra placed a hand on hers. 

“I’ve known that we are since we first found her.” He nodded. “As long as I have you, I’m not worried in the slightest.” Aqua relaxed, melting into Terra’s side. Terra pecked a kiss to her forehead. “Stella’s got the best damn family in all the worlds.” 

“Unsurprisingly, she has like eighty aunts and uncles.” 

“My point exactly!” Terra squeezed her shoulders. They chuckled. 

They enjoyed the silence. The air was still warm, the ocean fell back to the coral, the birds slowly stopped chirping as they got ready for the night. As the sky got darker, Aqua shifted in her spot. 

“Hey, so…” she bit her lip. “When I was in the dark realm,”- 

“We don’t need to talk about that now.” Terra reassured her. 

“But I want to.” 

Terra nodded, pulling her closer. “Alright.” 

She took a deep breath, starting again. “When I was there, I was so alone. Even on the occasions that I would find others- Mickey, Ansem- I never felt happy. I had even begun to wonder if they were just figures of my imagination from wandering so aimlessly. Every day was the same, I just was hiding and searching for a way out. And I quickly became helpless.” 

Terra didn’t speak, but gently rubbed his thumb in circles on her shoulder. Aqua took his free hand, holding it tight. 

“The… the only thing that kept me going was you and Ven. I knew I had to get back to you, to save you. Every day I was consumed with thoughts of what you two were going through- if darkness had found Ven, if I had lost you forever. And I had worried and worried so much, that I didn’t see the darkness around me begin to take hold. When the dark Ansem came and threw me into the ocean, I welcomed the darkness. It was cold, numbing my whole body and mind. Instead of worrying, I was apathetic. And... I liked it that way.” 

Aqua began to shake. Terra pulled her closer. “Are you okay? You don’t need to keep going if you can’t.” 

Aqua shook her head. “I’m fine, I’m fine.” She took in another deep breath, calming her nerves. “After that, it’s all black. I don’t remember what I did or how I felt. I just knew I was that way for a long time. When I finally came to, I was on this beach, not far from right here. I thought I saw you and Ven. But when Sora and Riku explained that I was saved, I lost it. I was so relieved that I cried. But also sad, because I didn’t know where you were. I was so determined to find you, to save you. And well, you know the rest of the story, I think.” She shook her head. “You were my reason to keep going. To always move forward, to never give up.” She looked into his eyes. “You were always my light. And I just want to thank you.” 

“Aqua…” Terra didn’t know what to say. He pulled her tight to his chest, breathing in her hair and kissing her forehead. “You’re the strongest woman I’ve ever known. I am so lucky.” He hesitated. “I… don’t remember much from those ten years. I just see fragments of the horrible things I was possessed to do. I see out of so many people’s eyes, and they’ve all blurred together. But the one thing that kept me sane was knowing that you were out there, fighting for me. Even in a realm of pure dark, you managed to light my way home. Back to you.” 

They both realized the silent tears that had flowing down their cheeks. Terra wiped away Aqua’s with his thumb, pushing a stray strand of hair behind her ear. 

“I’m glad we can finally talk about these things.” Aqua rested a hand on his, leaning into it. “I mean, we have before, but… I feel lighter this time.” 

“I agree.” Terra felt a faint smile on his lips. 

They curled into each other, looking out at the sliver of sun on the horizon. Slowly it disappeared, dropping into the black night sky. Everything became silent, animals running into their burrows and the ocean laying still. As stars began to rise, Terra stood up from the sand. He lent a hand to Aqua, who stood with him, and they went back inside the cabin. 

“It’s a good thing we’re used to sleeping together.” Terra chuckled, throwing back the covers of the bed and hopping in. 

“Very true.” Aqua giggled. “Only now we don’t have a child to wake us up.” 

“Thank the worlds.” Terra belly laughed and raised an arm high. Aqua slid underneath it, his arm falling to rest on her back. Her hands rested on his chest, tracing the lines of his muscles. 

“Is there anything else you want to talk about before we sleep?” Aqua offered. “It’s still a little early.” 

“I’m alright. Did you?” 

She shook her head. “No, no. Goodnight, Terra.” 

“Goodnight, Aqua.” Terra bent down a bit to kiss her softly before turning off a bed stand light. 

A few silent minutes passed, the duo relaxing into the bed. Terra hesitantly whispered. 

“Aqua?” 

“Yeah?” 

“I uh… please stop me if it’s too fast, or your uncomfortable, but I’m just thinking… this is really one of the only times that there won’t be kids around.” 

“Yes?” Aqua pried. 

“And well- again, not to be weird- but you really are so beautiful, and I’m wondering if, if you’re comfortable,”- 

Aqua pushed herself up to kiss him, partially to answer him and partially to finish his stumbling thoughts. Terra made a small noise of surprise before melting into her touch. Aqua ran her hands up his chest and down his back, lightly scratching at his bare skin. Terra placed a hand gently on her hip, teasing the hem of her shirt up. He shifted, partially kneeling above her, lips still locked together. 

They had a lot of catching up to do, after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally, amirite?


	13. Family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Terra and Aqua come back to the Land of Departure, where the brothers and the Islanders are waiting with Stella.

Terra yawned awake, stretching whatever limbs were free and wiping away the crud in his eyes. Morning light poured in through a window, filling the room in an orange glow. He looked down at Aqua, peacefully asleep on his chest. 

Wait a minute. He hesitantly and gently lifted the blanket around her just a hair, looking underneath. He quickly dropped it and looked away, his face bright red. So last night wasn’t a dream. 

Aqua stirred with a small groan, squeezing Terra tight. His heart raced, and he prayed she couldn’t hear it pounding in his chest. He gently raised his arm, running his fingers through her hair. 

She yawned awake, eyes fluttering open until they were locked on Terra’s. “Good morning, you.” She spoke with a sleepy smile, still half awake. 

“Good morning.” He shifted just a bit so they could kiss. Aqua’s lips lingered longer than he expected, but he wasn’t about to complain. 

“I don’t wanna go back.” Aqua curled tight into Terra’s chest, wrapping her arms and legs around him. 

Terra’s brain short circuited a moment, realizing just how much skin was touching. He shook the thought out of his head, wrapping his arms around her waist. “I don’t think Ven would appreciate that if we stayed here.” 

“He has Vanitas.” Aqua looked up at him. 

“That’s exactly why he wants us to come back.” They chuckled. A question bounced around in Terra’s brain, the words being said before he could think. “So… last night…”- 

“Was perfect.” Aqua finished. 

“Well, yeah.” Terra blushed. “But… we’re gonna stay this way when we get back, yeah? It wasn’t just for last night?” 

Aqua blinked, still struggling to wake up. “Terra, I am finally able to kiss you. I’m gonna kiss you every day from now on.” 

“I’ll hold you to that.” Terra smirked. “I just- I wanted to make sure that this was something you really wanted to continue. After all the things I’ve done”- 

Aqua kissed him before he could finish the sentence. “I don’t care what things we’ve done in the past that we regret. What matters is that right now, I have you. With all of your perfect imperfections.” 

“And I have you.” Terra beamed. “Although you have many less imperfections.” 

“I doubt that.” Aqua smirked. 

“I could give you some more…” Terra pulled her close, gently nipping at her neck. A hand fell down her hips, Aqua’s hands curled on the small of his back. 

“You know we should get going…” Aqua whispered in his ear. 

“Alright, alright.” Terra backed off. “But one second couldn’t hurt anything.” 

“You’re ridiculous.” 

“You waited over ten years for me.” Terra winked. They kissed passionately for a moment. As Terra let go he quickly bit at the bottom of her neck, a small bruise immediately forming. 

“Terra!” Aqua blushed hard as she hid a smile. 

“Sorry, sorry.” Terra pecked her lips before rolling out of bed. He nearly fell onto the floor, there being slightly less mattress than he was used to. He recovered though, and in time to remember that his boxers were flung somewhere in the recesses of the room. As Aqua stretched and woke up, he gathered the stray bits of clothing. 

He sheepishly looked away as he held out Aqua’s clothes. “H-here…” 

“You can look, you know.” Aqua giggled and took her clothes. “Thanks.” She stood and got dressed into her everyday outfit, dried off from the brief swim last night. Terra did the same, stuffing the pajamas back into the box Ventus left. 

“I hope Stella’s okay.” Aqua thought aloud as she got ready. 

“I’m more worried about the kids taking care of her.” Terra shook his head. “We’re gonna get back and the house is gonna be on fire.” 

Aqua bit her lip. “Honestly that’s not out of the realm of possibility. We should probably hurry back.” 

Terra drew out a long “yeah.” The duo got ready and brought everything in the cabin back to order. They equipped their armor and summoned their riders as they walked onto the beach, launching away back to the Land of Departure. 

—

“Terra! Aqua!” Ventus beamed and jumped over the couch, running up to hug his friends. Chirithy was stuck like glue to his head, fast asleep. The trio hugged tight. Vanitas walked in the room, leaning against the door frame. 

“Is there ever a time that cat isn’t asleep?” Terra teased. 

“I mean, he is a dream eater. Sleeping is what he does.” Ventus shrugged. “You should ask the same about Vanitas.” 

“I’m literally right here.” Vanitas spoke up. 

Aqua giggled. “Where’s the others?” 

“Oh, uh,” Ven looked up in thought, counting them off on his fingers. “Riku probably just got out of the shower, Sora’s making eggs and toast for everyone, and Kairi is waking up Stella.” 

“You’re letting Sora near a stove?” Terra asked. 

“Little Chef taught him well.” Vanitas shrugged. “I’m helping him.” Terra nodded and relaxed his shoulders. 

“We should go check on Stella.” Aqua suggested you Terra. He nodded with a smile and a grunt. 

“Aw, I wanna hear about your night!” Ventus slumped. 

“We’ll tell you in a minute.” Terra messed his hair. Ven playfully pushed his arm back. “Why don’t you go help set up the table?” 

“Alright.” Ven drug out the word, exaggerating dragging his feet. Vanitas rolled his eyes as he followed behind. Aqua took Terra’s hand in hers as they walked through the halls. 

“Ten munny that Ven is gonna cry when we tell him.” Terra playfully nudged her. 

“Why would I want to lose ten munny?” Aqua teased. 

The door to Stella’s room was partially open, and they could hear her cries and Kairi’s calming whispering. Terra gently knocked at the door before opening it fully, the duo slipping in. 

“Hey guys!” Kairi whispered, her eyes full of stars. She was leaning over Stella’s crib. “How was it?” 

“We’ll explain it all at breakfast.” Terra answered. 

“Thank you so much for taking care of Stella,” Aqua smiled. “How about you go help Sora and we’ll take it from here?” 

“Oh, okay! If you need anything, let me know.” Kairi curtsied before running out of the room. 

Stella cried out, the wayfinders above her casting rainbow colors around the crib. Aqua instinctively hushed her, picking her up and holding her tight. She bounced and swayed in the spot, Terra immediately beside her. At the sight of them, she calmed down, but was still visibly upset. 

“She must be hungry. Can you grab her basket so we can bring her to the kitchen?” 

Terra did so without a second thought, holding it high. Aqua hummed as she laid Stella inside. 

“Something about this…” Terra spoke softly, “it feels…” 

“Different.” Aqua nodded. 

“And yet, right.” Terra glanced up. 

“Absolutely.” Aqua stole a quick kiss. 

Stella blew bubbles, drool running down her face. Aqua shook her head lovingly, quickly wiping it away with her bib. She propped the door open for Terra to walk through with the basket and headed back to the kitchen. 

The table was set, warm eggs and toast being plated to each. Sora was much more lively than Vanitas in the kitchen, flipping utensils and dancing around to music. Aqua was almost hit by a stray spatula as she readied Stella’s bottle. Vanitas was apathetic toward it- as long as the food was cooked properly, he couldn’t complain about the methods. Ventus lived for it though, dancing along with him. Riku and Kairi sat at the table, watching the duo of idiots mess around. Terra sat along them with Stella. Aqua took a seat beside him and handed him the warm bottle, and he began feeding Stella. 

Kairi playfully nudged Riku to get his attention. “You know you wanna.” 

“Want to do what, exactly?” He crossed his arms and raised a brow.” 

“Join Sora and Ven.” 

“You surely do, but I’m comfortable here, thanks.” 

“Oh, come on!” Kairi hopped in her seat. “You’re such a good dancer! Just for a moment?” 

Riku sighed, weak to her plea. “Fine, but only if you join too. I don’t trust you to not video tape it.” 

“Well, where’s the fun in that?” Kairi stuck her tongue. Riku did the same to her. She took his hand, dragging him to the others. She turned up the music slightly, egging Riku to dance with the trio. He caved, stomping to the beat and waving his arms. Sora hip bumped him as Kairi took his hands, Ventus jumping up and down. Vanitas shuffled around them, taking the reins of cooking. Terra and Aqua chuckled as they watched the chaos. 

“We really are a little family, huh?” Aqua grinned. 

“Little isn’t the word I’d use.” Terra spoke. 

“Also true.” Aqua shook her head. Stella sucked greedily at the bottle, much more relaxed in Terra’s arms. 

“Bone at the teeth!” Sora raised up plates to serve. 

“It’s… bon appetit.” Vanitas winced. 

“That’s what I said.” Sora shrugged, plopping eggs and toast on each plate. 

“Sora studied under Little Chef, I think he knows how to pronounce it.” Ventus teased him. 

“See? Thanks, Ven!” Sora didn’t realize the sarcasm. 

“You all are terrible.” Riku shook his head. “Let’s just eat, I’m starving.” 

It took a moment, but the group finally settled down at the table and began stuffing their faces. Terra was a bit awkward, juggling Stella and his own food, but he made it work. 

“Thank you all again for taking care of Stella while we were away.” Aqua spoke between bites. 

“Of course! Anytime!” Kairi happily spoke. 

“Where’s Namine?” Terra thought out loud. 

“Oh, she roomed with Roxas for the night. She and Axel are gonna pick us up and bring us back home.” Sora answered. Terra nodded with a humm. 

“So tell us! How was it?” Ventus beamed. 

“Unnecessary.” Aqua laughed. “You know you didn’t have to do that for us.” 

“We wanted to do something nice for you guys.” Ven shrugged. 

“Did you find our skipping stones?” Sora asked. “Kairi was worried we placed them too far away.” 

“No, we did.” Terra smiled. 

“Terra had never skipped stones before.” Aqua teased. Sora and Kairi’s jaws dropped. 

“In my defense”- Terra interrupted, “there aren’t any lakes here.” 

“Excuses.” Kairi dramatically shook her head. 

“The rest of the night was nice though,” Aqua redirected the conversation. “It was very relaxing. Ate some delicious sandwiches, swam for a bit, watched the sunset… it was nice.” Aqua winked at Terra, who struggled to hide his blushing face. 

“So… it was just a quiet night?” Ventus pried. He clearly wanted to know more, but didn’t know how to ask. 

“Yep.” Aqua slyly smiled. 

“I’m glad you had a good time.” 

“We had a very good time.” Terra emphasized. Aqua lightly kicked him under the table. 

“And uh, I guess one other thing happened.” Aqua pretended to be deep in thought. She looked over at Terra expectantly. 

“Oh yeah!” Terra’s face lit up. “We’re together now.” 

Sora had to stop himself from doing a spit take across the table. Kairi and Ventus gasped happily. Riku and Vanitas were unfazed, continuing to chow down on their food. 

“Congrats.” Riku spoke with a mouthful. 

Sora nudged him. “Just congrats? This is amazing news!” 

“Amazing is a bit excessive,” Aqua blushed, the duo glancing at each other. 

“Well, I’m happy for you!” Kairi spoke. 

“Me too!” Sora added. 

Ventus sat quiet, a smile splitting his face, a few tears of relief falling down his cheeks. He got up and ran behind them, wrapping his arms around them and pulling them tight. 

“Do you know… how long… I had to listen to Terra…” Ven laughed. 

“Ventus!” Terra blushed harder. 

“He’s so dumb! Every morning he talks to me about how much he likes you!” Ventus ignored Terra’s pleas, speaking directly to Aqua. 

“You’re gonna get graviara-ed if you keep picking on him, you know.” Aqua chuckled. 

“Yeah! I’m gonna pummel you so hard, you’ll transport to another world!” Terra playfully rubbed his knuckles onto Ventus’s head. 

Stella burped, formula dripping down her face. The trio laughed at the timing as Terra wiped it away. 

Kairi’s phone rang with a small lilt. “Namine says they’re gonna come in a couple minutes.” She waved her phone to the islanders. With that news, everyone shoveled down the rest of their food, thanking Sora and Vanitas for cooking. Vanitas rolled his eyes and collected the plates to wash them. He just wanted a reason to not go outside. The rest of the crew waited on the doorstep, watching the surroundings for the corridors. Eventually, the familiar portal appeared, Axel and Namine walking through. Kairi ran up and hugged them, Sora and Riku close behind. 

“Hey guys.” Namine waved to the wayfinder trio. “How was the night?” 

“It was wonderful, thank you.” Aqua slightly bowed. She held Stella in her arms, who awkwardly waved at them. 

“And how was the cabin?” Lea winked at Terra, lightly punching him on the arm. “Make use of anything around, per chance?” 

“The cabin was great.” Terra shoved him back. “Even without any extraneous things.” He winked. 

“What are you talking about?” Ventus asked, clearly confused. 

“You’ll learn when you’re older, bud.” Lea assured. “Now, is everyone ready for the one-stop-ride to Island Town?” He relaxed his arms behind his head. 

“As long as that means Destiny Islands, yes.” Riku rolled his eyes. 

“Tough crowd.” Lea blew a raspberry as he summoned another corridor. “Come along now. Hands and feet inside the ride at all times.” He ushered the kids in. They each waved a goodbye to Terra, Aqua, Ven, and Stella. Before going in, Lea quickly walked up to Aqua and Terra. 

“If y’all ever need anything, anything at all, let me know. Me and Isa are also good with kids.” At this, Stella grabbed a spike of his hair and tugged. Lea grunted with a nervous laugh, carefully removing Stella’s fingers. “What a little goober.” 

“Thanks, Lea.” Aqua nodded. “You should go follow the kids before they get lost.” 

“They’re smart enough.” Lea shrugged. “By the way, you might wanna get that bruise on your neck checked out, looks pretty bad.” He turned and walked away as Aqua quickly clapped a hand to her neck. “See ya.” He gave a two finger salute and disappeared. 

“And like that, there were four.” Terra sighed in relief. 

“Five, including Vanitas.” Ventus added. “So what now?” 

“I think we deserve a little family time.” Aqua suggested, letting her hand fall from the bruise. “Why don’t you go pick a game to play?” 

“Can we play Command Board?” Ventus’s eyes shined. 

“Only if you wanna lose.” Terra laughed. 

“You’re on!” Ventus ran back inside. 

Terra wrapped an arm around Aqua’s waist. “Yeah. This feels right.” 

“I couldn’t agree more.” She looked up at him. He gently held a hand to her cheek, leaning in close. 

“May I?” Terra asked, his lips nearly touching hers. 

“I’d be mad if you didn’t.” 

They kissed on the lawn, the warm sun on their skin. Stella gurgled between them, grasping at their clothes. When they parted, Terra pecked a kiss to Stella’s forehead. 

“Let’s get inside before Ven drags us in.” Terra smiled.


	14. Worry

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Terra and Aqua get a call from Yen Sid. Ven and Vanitas have a heart to heart. Stella's living her best life though.

Aqua’s gummiphone buzzed on the nightstand. Half awake, she lazily felt around for it, finally grabbing it and sitting up. It was light out, but still much too early to be awake. Terra watched her through half lidded eyes, trying to figure out what was happening. 

“Master Aqua.” 

“Master Yen Sid.” Aqua groggily yawned. Her eyes snapped open. “Master Yen Sid!” She quickly fixed her hair and pulled up her shirt collar. He ignored it. 

“It has been a year since you found that child.” 

“Stella?” She sat up straighter. “What about it?” 

“I am calling to check in on her progress. Has she been in contact with heartless since you found her? Have you noticed anything of suspicion?” 

“She’s a baby…” Aqua glanced down at Terra. “She just does… baby things.” 

Terra sat up but stayed out of frame, figuring that Master Yen Sid didn’t want to see him shirtless. “We haven’t noticed anything of worry, no. The unversed don’t attack her, but Vanitas has gotten really good with controlling that.” 

Yen Sid nodded with a grunt. “I just want to be sure we do not forget her origin. Finding a baby within a pile of heartless is something to take note of. If anything happens, I need you two to tell me immediately.” 

“Do you think she’s going to do something bad?” Aqua asked. 

“You can never be too careful.” Yen Sid assured. “Another reason I am contacting you is for a mission. Do you remember your mission with Kairi a few months ago?” Aqua nodded. “There’s been a new finding, a gathering of dark forces. I need you two to investigate once more. I trust you can?” 

Aqua nodded. “I will contact Kairi. We’ll be en route within the hour.” 

“I trust you will. Chip and Dale will send you the coordinates.” 

“Thank you, Master.” 

Aqua hung up the phone, collapsing onto the bed. “Fuck me.” 

“Life of a Master Keyblade weilder has no breaks, huh?” Terra propped himself on an arm to better see her. 

“I was looking forward to sleeping in.” She sat back up, opening her phone again. She quickly typed out a message to Kairi. 

“I’m sorry, honey.” Terra moved close to her, wrapping an arm around her and kissing her cheek. “I’ll make sure Stella and the boys don’t burn down the house.” 

“Thanks.” She rested her head on his shoulder. 

A silent minute passed. “It’s weird to think we’ve had Stella for a full year.” 

“Yeah.” Aqua held a faint smile. 

“Does this make it her birthday? I mean, she is a year old now.” Terra thought aloud. 

“We should celebrate.” Aqua suggested. “Or at least, I would, if I didn’t have to leave.” She sighed, getting out of bed. Terra left his arms in his lap as he watched her get ready. 

“Maybe we can celebrate when you get back?” Terra shrugged. 

“Depends on how long I’m gone. You guys can do a small thing without me, if you want.” 

“It’d be rude to celebrate without her mother.” 

Even after a few months, the duo were still getting used to calling themselves parents. Aqua’s heart melted at the word. 

“I’m only saying Ven will be upset if there’s no party.” She joked. 

“He’ll get over it.” Terra waved away the thought. “...do you have to leave?” 

Aqua, now fully dressed, leaned against the desk. “Unfortunately. I’ll keep you updated, okay?” 

“You better.” Terra moved to the edge of the bed, opening his arms up to the room. Aqua walked over and collapsed into him, embracing him tight. Terra squeezed her, a hand in her hair. It migrated to her jaw, the duo melting into a kiss. 

“I need to go.” Aqua whispered, her forehead pressed against his. 

“Okay.” Terra pressed a kiss to her nose and let her go. “Just be careful, okay?” 

“I promise.” Aqua ran a thumb across his cheek before walking over to the door. 

“I love you, Aqua.” 

The words lingered in the air. Terra spoke them without thinking, still half asleep. But every nerve in his body tensed at once when he noticed what he had said. Aqua’s hand had frozen above the door knob. She turned back to him. 

“Did you just say…?” 

“No! Yes? Uh”- He stumbled over himself. “W-what is the right answer here?” His face was as red as a beet. 

Even exhausted as she was, there were still stars in Aqua’s eyes. She quickly closed the gap between them, throwing her satchel to the ground and jumping on top of him. They fell down to the mattress, a giggling mess. Aqua kissed him passionately, pulling him as close to her as she could. 

“I love you, Terra.” 

They kissed again, and again, each becoming more passionate. “Are you sure you can’t stay for just a few minutes more?” Terra begged, nipping at her skin. 

“You know I shouldn’t…” Aqua trailed. 

“Shouldn’t doesn’t mean you can’t.” Terra held a finger to her jaw, looking into her clear blue eyes. 

Before Aqua could answer, Stella started crying across the hall. The duo winced, knowing there wasn’t any escaping that. Aqua crawled off of the bed, straightening out her clothes and picking back up her satchel. Terra stood with her, taking her hands in his. 

“Be safe.” Terra looked deep in her eyes. 

“I will be.” 

“I love you.” 

“I love you too.” 

They hugged tight, Terra pressing a kiss to her forehead. “I’ll go get Stella. Go be the badass I know you are.” He tucked a hair behind her ear. 

And with that, the duo went their separate ways. 

— 

“It’s Stella’s birthday?” Ventus slammed his hands on the table as he jumped up. “We gotta celebrate!” 

“We thought you’d say that.” Terra chuckled. He held Stella in his arms as she drank her bottle, able to hold it in her tiny hands. With an arm finally free, he was able to comfortably eat his breakfast. 

“Oh, but,” Ven slunk back into his chair. “Aqua will miss it.” 

“She said to go along without her.” Terra shrugged. 

“She did? She won’t be upset?” 

“We can make a small celebration when she gets back.” 

Ventus filled back up with energy. “What should we do then? Decorations? Cupcakes? Vani can make the cupcakes!” 

Vanitas, silent until this point, had fire in his eyes. “I cook. I don’t bake.” 

“Then I’ll bake.” Ventus shrugged it off. 

“I don’t think anyone should be in the kitchen today…” Terra recounted his kitchen incident the last time Aqua left. 

“Sora! I’ll invite Sora over and he’ll help me.” Ventus snapped his fingers at his brilliant thought. Vanitas sunk further into his chair. 

“You know this doesn’t have to be a big thing, right? She’s only one.” Terra spoke. 

“Fine. I’ll message everyone to come, but I won’t sound super convincing.” Ventus pulled out his phone, already typing. “Oh, maybe if Chirithy can actually stay awake, they can help put up some decorations.” 

Terra shook his head. There was no stopping Ventus once he had a plan. He had noticed Vanitas slip away out of the room, clearly uninterested in the party. Terra honestly couldn’t blame him- social situations were never his cup of tea either. Aqua had always needed to help him through meetings that were mandatory when they were little. They would always stick close together and take turns introducing each other to the Masters. 

“What are you gonna do Terra?” Ventus asked. Terra was snapped out of thought. 

He took away Stella’s bottle and held her over his shoulder, tapping at her back. “I dunno. I just figured I’d be taking care of the birthday girl. But I suppose I can help clean up.” 

“Cool.” Ventus beamed. “I’m gonna go get ready.” He ran upstairs. 

Stella burped. Terra held her back in his arms, looking down at her tiny body. He wiggled a finger in front of her, her small hands grasping out for it. She was trying to put everything in her mouth nowadays. Kairi said she might have started teething. Terra carried her into the living room, letting her lay down on the rug. She rolled to her stomach, trying (with minimal success) to crawl. The floor was littered with dolls now, and Terra took a stuffed lion and held it in front of her. Squeezing it, the mane lit up and an upbeat melody played. Her eyes were transfixed on it, watching intently as Terra made it dance around her. 

Yen Sid did have a point. He had completely forgotten her suspicious origin. But it hardly mattered to him now. No matter where she came from, this was his daughter. And he loved every minute with her. 

His phone buzzed. He laid the lion down, Stella taking hold of the paws. He pulled it out, a message from Aqua on the screen. 

Water Dancer> Kairi and I landed. Wish us luck. You and Ven gonna party? 

Me> giving u both lots of luck. i know u dont need it tho :) ven has a whole plan. keep u updated. 

Me> well save you a cupcake 

Water Dancer> As long as I come home to a clean house this time. :P 

Me> unfortunately i cannot promise that 

Water Dancer> Sending you luck too. <3 

Me> <3 

Terra took a deep breath. His chest always got so heavy when she was on missions. If Stella wasn’t there, he would have insisted to go with them. 

Stella had managed to scoot/crawl her way to Terra’s lap. She looked up at him with her wide green eyes, full of wonder. He smiled wide, picking her up and holding her in the air. As he brought her back down he lifted up her shirt, blowing a raspberry on her belly. She giggled, a pure sound like bubbles and light. 

— 

Ventus walked through the halls, party supplies in hand. He happily hummed as he made plans in his head. Sora was on the way, and Riku and Namine had decided to hang out with the Twilight group until the party. 

Suddenly, a hand grabbed onto his shirt, dragging him away. He dropped his things on the floor, tripping into a room. 

“I need to talk to you.” Vanitas closed the door. 

Ventus realized he was in Vanitas’s room. “You could just text, you know? Don’t have to scare me like that.” He straightened out his shirt. 

“Now where’s the fun in that?” Vanitas teased, sitting on the bottom bunk of his bed. Ven took a seat beside him with a sigh. He tried to remember when this room didn’t look like a bomb went off, and found he even forgot what color the floor actually was. 

“Are you just gonna be a butt or are you gonna tell me why you kidnapped me?” 

“I told you, dumbass. I need to talk to you.” 

“I know,” Ventus shook his head. “About what?” 

Vanitas instinctively held a growl in his throat, but slumped into himself. 

“Is it about the unversed?” Ventus pried. 

“Of course it’s about the fu”- Vanitas bit his tongue. “Sorry. Yeah, it’s about the unversed.” He ran a hand through his hair, hiding his face. 

Sorry? Vanitas never apologized. Ventus changed to a more serious stance. 

Vanitas opened his mouth multiple times to speak, but no words escaped. Ventus sat patiently. Vanitas got frustrated, clumsily picking up his helmet and shoving it on his head. He took a deep breath. “You remember a few months ago, when we sparred?” 

“Yeah, of course I remember.” Ventus shrugged. 

“Think about it.” Vanitas tapped his foot. 

Ven winced that he caught his bluff. He actually tried to remember, realizing that was the day the unversed went haywire and almost hurt Stella. He had tried to forget the memory of Vanitas struggling on the ground. “No, I… I remember.” 

Vanitas shifted in his spot. “That was the last time I summoned them.” 

“What?” Ven’s eyes went wide. “Wait, what about when we tricked Terra and Aqua to go to the islands?” 

“That was different.” Vanitas crossed his legs and arms. “I just sent a couple floods over- even if I lost control of them, they couldn’t hurt a fly.” 

“You’re scared of losing control of them again.” 

Vanitas turned away. “Yeah. And I’m…” he reluctantly slumped his shoulders in defeat. “I don’t really know what to do. If I keep them internalized, I’ll just start puking them again like when I was in the graveyard. It’s taken me a long time to be able to communicate with them, and have them flip between our worlds and theirs. I fear that I’m regressing.” 

“Then why don’t you summon one? Just in your bedroom. Or we could spar agai”- 

“No!” Vanitas spat. “I can’t. I can’t go through that again.” 

A silence blanketed the room. Ventus wrung his hands, unsure what to do. 

“How can I help you, Vani?” 

“Don’t laugh.” 

Ventus raised a brow. “Why would I laugh?” 

“I want to retrain the unversed. I want to teach them to help people.” 

“What?” Ventus froze. 

Vanitas took off his helmet, Ven seeing his amber eyes full of fire. “I’m trying my best here. I am. I want to help! I just… I don’t have the physical capability. But if I retrain the unversed, to have them do exactly what I want them to, I could help. And then, if I were to lose control of them again, it wouldn’t be a danger!” He collapsed onto the bed and threw his helmet aside. “It’s dumb, I know. Tell the others and I’ll murder you.” 

Ventus mimed zipping his mouth closed. “Dude, this isn’t a bad idea. I can help you. Let me be your training dummy! I can take a hit!” 

“I could crush you in five minutes flat.” Vanitas teased. 

“I mean, probably. But I’d make those five minutes hell for you.” Ventus stuck out his tongue. 

Vanitas huffed a laugh. “Yeah, right.” He sat back up, playfully punching his arm. 

“So let’s go! Let’s do it.” Ventus hopped up from the bed. 

“Like, right now?” Vanitas sputtered. 

“Like, right now! Sora won’t be here for another few minutes. Summon one! And not a flood either, do something that might attack me.” 

Vanitas gulped. “Your funeral,” he shrugged it off. He closed his eyes and held his hands out in front of him, deep in thought. A small purple vortex bubbled in front of Ventus, a Hareraiser pulling itself into reality. Its red eyes were fixed on Ventus, who was suddenly regretting his choices. 

“Hey, little guy.” Ventus kneeled down to its height, holding out a hand like someone would for a deer. 

The Hareraiser raised an ear high, ready to strike. Vanitas twitched, and it directly responded by lowering it. It bounced closer, sniffing Ven’s hand. 

Vanitas suddenly threw one of his arms to the side. The unversed hid in the dark puddle and began to move around the room, escaping under the closed door. Ventus stood up, about to alert Vanitas, but he saw how hard he was focusing. He would know if something bad happened. 

After a moment, Vanitas’s hand came back center, and the puddle slipped back inside. The Hareraiser popped back up, this time was an array of party supplies wrapped in its ears. 

“My stuff!” Ven smiled. He took the supplies, the Hareraiser humming. “Thanks, buddy.” 

The Hareraiser spun in place, and Ven could have sworn the eyes flickered blue for just a moment. But before he could investigate further, the bunny disappeared once more, the darkness along with it. Vanitas collapsed on the bed again, breathing hard. 

“Vani!” Ven hopped onto the mattress. “You did it! That went so well!” 

“I never want to do that shit again.” Vanitas groaned, speaking deadpan. “Why was that so fucking hard? I want to die.” 

“I’m proud of you though!” Ven held out a hand. Vanitas took it to help sit back up. “Seriously man. You’ve gone through it. But you’re a great brother, and I know you’re a great uncle for Stella too.” 

Vanitas blushed. “What makes you think I give shit about that?” 

“Call it intuition.” Ventus stood up and walked to the door. “Or call it literally being the light side of you, whatever you’d like.” 

“Get out of my room.” Vanitas rolled his eyes and shooed him away. Ventus hid a laugh and left him alone.


	15. Party

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Terra and Ventus celebrate Stella's first birthday!

It took some coercing, but Ventus got Chirithy to help Terra put up banners and balloons. Stella laughed and clapped as she watched the odd cat jump around Terra’s frame, haphazardly sticking decorations to the walls. Terra was convinced Stella just liked Chirithy’s bulbous head, but Ven wouldn’t let him say that. 

Sora made himself at home in the kitchen, as bubbly as ever. Ventus picked the flavors and colors of the cupcakes, and Sora expertly baked them. Ven tried to decorate them, but ultimately failed, relying on a simple swirl icing. Vanitas shuffled out of his room, still drained. He took a seat in front of the cupcakes, lazily taking sprinkles and shaking them on top. 

The others began to trickle in, until everyone was all in one spot, happily chatting and chilling out in the living room. Well, everyone except Aqua and Kairi. Terra anxiously took out his phone, but no messages were waiting for him. 

Me> hey the party is about to start . Hope u are both ok. 

He hesitantly tapped the sides of his phone. 

Me> I love you 

He double checked that his ringer was on and slipped the phone back in his pocket. 

Namine was currently holding Stella, sitting her up in her lap with a blanket over both of them. Most of the group was huddled around her, babbling to Stella. Chirithy was already asleep again at her feet. 

“I can’t believe this little nugget is already a year old.” Lea teased. 

“It’s felt much shorter than that.” Isa agreed. 

“Depends on who you ask.” Terra joined with a laugh. 

“There’s the man of the hour!” Lea slapped a hand on Terra’s back. “Where’s the missus?” 

“On a mission with Kairi. Hopefully they’ll be back, but I dunno.” 

“I’m sure they will.” Namine smiled. Stella held out her arms toward Terra. She tried to talk, babble falling out of her mouth. “I think someone wants you,” Namine laughed and held her up. Terra took her, and she snuggled up to his chest with a thumb in her mouth. 

“She knows who her dad is.” Xion teased. 

“She has gotten much needier, that’s for sure.” Terra pressed a kiss to Stella’s head. 

The group sat and talked for awhile. Riku slipped out to talk to the boys in the kitchen. Roxas began showing the girls funny videos he has found. Lea and Isa talked to Terra about an event Scrooge McDuck held at Twilight Town, and how Lea got banned from the movie theatre. Stella wiggled happily on the floor beside them, surrounded by toys. 

Parties were never too extreme with the group. As long as everyone was together and happy, it was a success. 

Eventually, Sora poked his head out into the living room. “Is anyone hungry?” He teased, swinging around a tray full of cupcakes. They were vanilla and chocolate, both topped with purple icing and star sprinkles. Roxas and Xion tripped over themselves trying to get to the tray first, their extreme sweet tooth taking over. Sora stood proudly as he rested the cupcakes on the coffee table, everyone in the room taking one. Riku slinked back into the room as well, preferring to stay on the sidelines. 

“So yummy…” Xion spoke with a full mouth. 

“This so so good, Sora!” Roxas spoke, bits of cupcake flying out of his mouth. 

“Swallow before you speak.” Isa spoke flatly as he carefully unfurled a wrapper. 

“Sorry Isa.” The duo spoke in unison. Namine chuckled. 

“What did you say?” Lea leaned in close to Isa, speaking with his mouth full. Isa playfully rolled his eyes and pushed him away. 

“And let’s not forget!” Ventus yelled from the kitchen, carefully shuffling into the room. He held a smaller vanilla cupcake without icing in his hand. A single candle was lit on top of it, and Ven held up his free hand to keep the tiny flame stable. “Happy birthday to you…” Ventus began to sing. 

“Happy birthday to you,” Terra grinned, picking up Stella and letting her sit in his lap. She looked around confused, her eyes landing on the bright light on the cupcake. 

“Happy birthday dear Stella,” the whole room sang along. Ventus kneeled in front of Terra, holding the cupcake up to Stella. 

“Happy birthday to you!” The room was full of love and suspense, now waiting for Stella’s reaction. She looked around at everyone, clearly confused. 

“Blow out the candle, honey.” Terra bounced her. He mimicked blowing air from his lips. 

Stella pursed her lips and blew, spit coming out more than air. Terra blew it out for her at that moment, and the room combusted into applause and cheer. Stella jumped up in Terra’s lap, clapping and giggling. Ventus took out the candle and handed Stella the piece of cupcake. She grabbed it and squished it in her small hands before quickly shoving it all in her mouth. Her eyes lit up at the taste of sugar, and she chewed happily. 

Terra was suddenly aware of all the gummiphones on him, taking account of this vital moment. It hit him how long a year truly was, and how much she had grown in that period. How much he had grown with her. 

If only Aqua could have been there. 

— 

The party was a rousing success, but it had also completely drained Terra’s energy. After pleading Ventus and Vanitas to clean up, he carried Stella into her room to rock her to sleep. 

Terra’s low voice was perfect for lullabies, and Stella always relaxed easily in his arms. After he was sure she was asleep, he gently laid her in her crib. He lazily spun her mobile, everyone’s wayfinders waving about. Stella still wore the one Ven had made her too, the tiny star always tucked into her pajamas. He pressed a kiss to her forehead before shuffling across the hallway to his own room. He collapsed onto the bed. 

The room had slowly become a shared room after he and Aqua started dating. His belongings started to appear in the cracks, and after a few weeks, had completely integrated themselves. 

The room felt so empty with only one person. He wondered how Aqua had slept here alone for so many years. As his mind began to wander, he fished out his gummiphone. The most recent text was still when the party started. He felt worry take its heavy grasp in his chest. Shaking his head of bad thoughts, he reopened the chat log. 

Me> hey, checking in. Party was great. V&V are cleaning. Stellas asleep. I miss u hope youre ok 

He laid his phone on the bed stand and began taking off his clothes. As he finished and climbed into bed, the phone rang. His heart jumped out of his chest as he scrambled to unlock it. 

Light Twin> finished cleaning, leftovers are wrapped up on the table. Need help with Stella? 

Terra’s chest deflated. 

Me> just got her down. Thanks. Night man 

He dropped the phone back on the stand and laid down. Just as he was about to have his thoughts drift off, the phone buzzed again. Terra lazily grabbed it, knowing it was Ven again. 

Water Dancer> Hey you!! Sorry, it’s been so hectic. Too much to explain over text. But we’re okay and safe. Did Stella like her birthday? 

Terra’s heart raced. He couldn’t help the smile of relief splitting his face as he typed back. 

Me> yeah she loved it! Blew out her own candle. Got video. 

Me> attachment.mp3.048 

Me> Sora’s vid 

Water Dancer> I’m gonna cry, that’s so cute! She’s really gotten so big. I’m so upset I couldn’t be there. 

Me> hey, dont worry. Shes got plenty more bdays where that came from : P 

Water Dancer> I suppose you’re right. 

Water Dancer> and you got her to sleep okay? 

Me> yep. She misses her mom too. But she settles enough for me 

Water Dancer> I understand that. I settled for you too ;) 

Me> hey! ; P 

Water Dancer> haha well, I need to go again. I don’t know when we’ll get back :( but hopefully soon. Get some good rest, okay? 

Me> you too honey. Good night. <3 

Water Dancer> Goodnight <3 

Water Dancer> I love you Terra 

Terra paused at the text. It still looked so foreign to him. Yet it filled his chest with butterflies, and he held his phone tight. 

Me> I love you Aqua 

He closed the chat, looking at his background picture. He had changed it to a picture of the duo, Aqua kissing his jaw as he scrunched up his face. A thumb hovered over Aqua, desperately wanting to push through the screen and have her beside him. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath to steady himself before locking his phone and putting it back on his bed stand. Pulling the covers up tight, he turned to his side and fell asleep.

**Author's Note:**

> I really hope you all enjoy this self-indulgent deep dive into Terraqua! I will warn you that I am constantly busy, so at this point it may take longer to upload chapters. But no worries- I promise I'm gonna see this one through to the end <3 
> 
> You can follow me/message me at:  
Art: Instagram @anawkwardowlarts  
Memes: Twitter @orangeowlette 
> 
> Have a great day! <3


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